- 



a', "oo" :gm 



TRAVELS 



IN THE 



INTERIOR OF BRAZIL, 

PARTICULARLY IN THE 



GOLD AND DIAMOND DISTRICTS 

OF THAT COUNTRY, 
BT AUTHORITY OF THE PRINCE REGENT OF PORTUGAL , 

INCLUDING 

A VOYAGE TO THE RIO DE LA PLATA, 
AND AN HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE REVOLUTION OF BUENOS AYRES. 

ILLUSTRATED WITH ENGRA FINGS. 



By JOHN MAWE, 

AUTHOR OF "THE MINERALOGY OF DERBYSHIRE." 



LONDON: 

PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN, 
PATERNOSTER-ROW. 
1812. 



Siraliati and Presion, 
Printers-Street, London. 



II- Hi* I 



TO 



HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS 

THE PRINCE REGENT OF PORTUGAL, 

PRINCE OF BRAZIL, &c. &c. &c. 



Sir, 

'JJ'NDER the sanction of Your Royal Highness, I per- 
formed the Travels in your dominions of Brazil, of which 
the following is a Narrative : in obedience to the command 
with which Your Royal Highness honoured me on my de- 
parture from Rio de Janeiro, I now submit it to the Public. 

Unbiassed either by partiality or prejudice, I have endea- 
voured to give a clear and faithful relation of what I have 
seen. In describing the present state of Mining and Agricul- 
ture in your dominions, I have taken the liberty to suggest 
some improvements, which, in my humble opinion, would 
tend to increase the revenue of Your Royal Highness, and 
multiply the resources of the country. These are the princi- 

A 2 



( iv ) 



pal grounds on which I rest my hope, that the work, notwith- 
standing its imperfections, will be found not unworthy of 
being patronized by a Prince, whose happiness consists in pro- 
moting that of his subjects. 

On this occasion I cannot but express the deep regret I 
feel at the decease of that excellent member of Your Royal 
Highness's cabinet, the Conde de Linhares, whose goodness 
and greatness of mind encouraged every pursuit tending to 
the public advantage, with a zeal which true patriotism alone 
could inspire. Had he lived, I might have presumed on his 
receiving these pages with that kind and friendly partiality 
which ever distinguished his conduct towards me. Bereft of 
that Nobleman's protection, I stand unsupported before Your 
Royal Highness, to whose patronage I submit this work, as a 
testimonial of the high respect with which I have the honour 
to be 

Your Royal Highness's most obliged 

arid most humble servant, 



JOHN MAWE. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAP. I. 

"^TOYAGE to Cadiz, and thence to the Rio de la Plata. — Misfortunes at Monte Video. — 
Character of the Inhabitants. — Trade. — Geological Remarks . • Page I 

CHAP. II. 

Journey to Barriga Negra. — Geology of the Country. — Limestone, and Mode of burning 
it. — Horned Cattle. — Peons. — Horses. — Defective State of Agriculture. — Manners 
of the Inhabitants. — Dresf. — Wild Animals. — Monte-Video taken by the British. — 
My Return thither . . 18, 

CHAP. III. 

Expedition against Buenos Ayres. — Causes of its Failure. — Account of the Population of 
the Country, and of the various Classes which compose it . . . . 35 

CHAP. IV. 

Voyage to St. Catherine's. — Description of that Island, and of the Coast in its Vicinity 

Arrival at Santos, and Journey thence to St. Paul's 45 

CHAP. V. 

Description of St. Paul's System of Farming prevalent in its Neighbourhood Excur- 
sion to the Gold-Mines of Jaragua. — Mode of working them. — Return to Santos 67 

CHAP. VI. 

Coasting Voyage from Santos to Zapitiva, and Journey thence to Fuo de Janeiro . 88 



CHAP. VII. 

Description of Rio de Janeiro. — Trade. — State of Society. — Visit to the Prince Regent's 
Farm at Santa Cruz ' . . . - . . . . . 97 



( vi ) 



CHAP. VIII. 

Journey to Canta Gallo . . . . . . . . P a g e 1 1 1 

CHAP. IX. 

Description of Canta Gallo. — Of the Gold-washing of Santa Rita.^ — Account of the 
supposed Silver-Mine .... ...... 120 

CHAP. X. 

Permission obtained to visit the Diamond Mines. — Account of a pretended Diamond 
presented to the Prince Regent. — Journey to Villa Rica . . . . 137 

CHAP. XI. 

Origin and present State of Villa Rica. — Account of the Mint. — Visit to the City of 
Mariana. — Excursion to the Fazendas of Barro and Castro, belonging to His Excellency 
the Conde de Linhares . . . . . . . . . . 171 

CHAP. XII. 

Journey from Villa Rica to Tejuco, the Capital of the Diamond District. . 202 

CHAP. XIII. 

Visit to the Diamond Works on the River Jigitonhonha. — General Description of the 
Works. — Mode of Washing. — Return to Tejuco. — Visit to the Treasury Excur- 
sion to Rio Pardo. — Miscellaneous Remarks . . . . • 219 

CHAP. XIV. 

Some Account of the Districts of Minas Novas and Paracatu. — Of the large Diamond 
found in the River Abaite ......... 238 

CHAP. XV. 

Observations on Tejuco and Cerro do Frio ....... 247 

CHAP. XVI. 

General View of Minas Geraes 267 

CHAP. XVII. 

Brief Notices on the Capitanias of Bahia, Pernambuco, Seara, Maranham, Para, and Goyaz 

280 



( vii ) 



CHAP. XVIII. 

Geographical Description of the Capitania of Matto Grosso . . . Page 292 

CHAP. XIX. 

Account of the Capitania of Rio Grande . . . . . . . 316 

CHAP. XX. 

General Observations on the Trade from England to Brazil . . . . 322 
APPENDIX 337 



TRAVELS, &c. 



CHAP. I. 



Voyage to Cadiz and thence to the Rio de la Plata. — Misfortunes at 
Monte Video. — Character of the Inhabitants. — Trade. — Geological 
Remarks. 

A TRAVELLER who ventures to present his Narrative to the 



Public, is generally encouraged by the conviction that it con- 
tains novel and interesting information. This is my case ; and I 
beg leave, before I begin my story, briefly to state the subject of 
it to the Reader, in order that he may perceive the grounds on 
which it claims his attention. 

In the year 1804, I was induced to undertake a voyage of com- 
mercial experiment, on a limited scale, to the Rio de la Plata. 
On my arrival at Monte Video, the ship and cargo were seized ; 
I was thrown into prison, and afterwards sent into the interior, 
where I was detained until the taking of that place by the British 
troops under Sir Samuel Auchmuty. I afterwards obtained leave 
to accompany the army under General Whitelocke, which was 
sent against Buenos Ayres, and I rendered such services to the 
expedition as my two years' residence in the country enabled me 
to perform. At the termination of that expedition, I went to Rio 
de Janeiro. A letter of introduction to the Viceroy of Brazil, 

B 




( 2 ) 



which was given me by the Portugueze ambassador at London, 
gained me the notice and protection of his brother, the Conde de 
Linhares, who had then just arrived with the rest of the Court, and 
who recommended me to the Prince Regent, as a person devoted 
to mineralogical pursuits, and desirous of exploring the ample 
field for investigation which his rich and extensive territories pre- 
sented. His Royal Highness was graciously pleased to further my 
views, not only by granting me letters to the public functionaries 
of the various places I wished to visit, but by ordering an escort of 
soldiers, and every other necessary provision for performing the 
journey. I had the more reason to be grateful for this munificent 
patronage, because I knew that a decree existed prohibiting all 
foreigners from travelling in the interior of Brazil, and that no 
other Englishman had ever begun such an undertaking with those 
indispensible requisites to its success, the permission and sanction 
of the Government. 

Observations, made, in the course of these Travels, on the 
country and on its inhabitants, conftitute the main part of the 
volume now offered to the public. Whatever be their faults or their 
merits, they relate to a subject at present extremely interesting, 
both in a political and a commercial point of view ; they profess 
to developc the physical resources of a colony which, through 
recent changes, is likely to become an empire; and in part, to 
portray the character of a nation which is now the most ancient, 
and has ever been the most faithful, all} 7 of Great Britain. 

In the year before-mentioned, pursuant to my design of visiting 
the Rio de la Plata, I obtained His Majesty's licence to go thither 
in a vessel (my own property by a bottomry-bond) under Spanish 
colours, a precaution rendered necessary by our being at war with 
France, and by the hourly expectation of a rupture with Spain. 
My licence was, strictly speaking, a special one, " protecting all I 
" had on board the Spanish vessel, if, in case of a rupture with 
" Spain, she should be taken by any of our ships of war, priva- 



( 3 ) 



u teers," &c. I sailed on the first of August 1804, and after a fair 
voyage arrived at Cadiz. It there became necessary to conform to 
the colonial regulations of the government, which require that all 
articles of merchandize sent to South America be landed and entered 
at the Custom-House, where, on payment of a fee, they receive the 
necessary marks to make them pass for produce or manufactures of 
the mother-country. During my stay in this port occurred that unfor- 
tunate capture of the homeward-bound frigates by the British squa- 
dron off Cape Finisterre ; which, as may naturally be supposed, 
rendered the situation of an Englishman in Cadiz extremely embar- 
rassing. War soon broke out between the two countries, and this 
port was rigorously blockaded. In addition to the ills which befel 
me in consequence, I was near falling a victim to the plague which 
was then raging, and which swept away almost a fourth part of 
the inhabitants of Cadiz, of Gibraltar, and of other places in that 
region. The effects of this awful scourge were visible in every 
social circle ; almost in every family ; and perhaps the despondency 
caused by witnessing them, contributed to extend its fatal sway. 
I still shudder to remember, that of a party of strangers, amount- 
ing to five (myself included), who took coffee together one Saturday 
evening in perfect health, I, on the Monday-week following, was 
the sole survivor. The progress of the disorder was so rapid, that 
three of them died on the fourth day. It would be tedious to 
detail the particulars of my own case; but a short account of it 
will not perhaps be without its use to those who may, at any future 
time, be exposed to similar danger. 

The first symptoms I felt were extreme lassitude, heaviness, 
and tremor, accompanied with a considerable degree of fever, 
which I first observed while on my way to dine with a friend. 
I returned to my lodgings and took a grain of calomel, as had 
been my daily custom for some time. This precaution had been 
suggested to me by a skilful chemist in London, who furnished me 
with a quantity of that medicine, to be regularly taken whenever 

b 2 



( 4 ) 



I was exposed to contagion of any kind. Believing, however, that 
my complaint was only a bad cold, I took some tea and retired to 
bed, but passed a restless night. In the morning while at break- 
fast, among the Spanish family with whom I lodged, my appear- 
ance, and aversion to food, excited the apprehensions of the lady 
of the house, a humane and (to use an expressive family-phrase) 
a motherly woman, who assured me that I had the plague. Un- 
willing to believe her, though continually growing worse, I increased 
my dose of calomel and took tea very copiously. In the afternoon 
of the day following I wrote to the worthy Mr. Duff, the consul- 
general, requesting him to send Dr. Fife, an English physician, 
who, on visiting me, confirmed what my hostess had said, adding 
however that the symptoms were favourable. He prescribed no 
medicines, but ordered me to take tamarinds and hot mint tea at 
intervals in large quantities. After a third restless night, I found 
my pulse was above 130, and the fourth day brought the crisis of 
my disorder. At night I was suddenly seized with extreme sick- 
ness, which lasted the longer, by reason of the great quantities of 
liquid I had taken ; a profuse perspiration ensued, and did not 
abate until I was reduced from a robust habit of body to a state 
of extreme meagreness and debility. I now recovered rapidly, 
and in six days was enabled to visit my friends. Dr. Fife assured 
me that the favourable turn of my illness was owing to the calomel 
I had previously taken, and added, that if I had doubled the 
dose on the first appearance of the symptoms, there would, pro- 
bably, have been no occasion for his attendance. 

War being now formally declared, the port of Cadiz was 
blockaded with greater rigour than ever, and I had many diffi- 
culties to encounter in preparing to continue my voyage. The ill 
conduct of* my captain threw additional obstacles in my way, 
and gave me doubts respecting his character and experience, which 
in the sequel proved but too well-founded. At length the cargo, 
having passed the Custom-House conformably 1o the understood 

9 



< 5 ) 



conditions, was safely embarked, and in the latter end of March 
1805 we sailed. Our crew consisted wholly of Genoese and Ca- 
talans, with the exception of the pilot, a Biscayan, and one good 
Portugueze sailor. As might naturally be expected, we were de- 
tained by one of the blockading squadron, the Amphion, an officer 
belonging to which, accompanied me to the Admiral, Sir John 
Orde, who, after examining my papers, treated me with every 
civility, and gave me a certificate directing all ships of war, &c. 
of his squadron not to molest us, but to render us, if necessary, 
all the assistance in their power. This protection was of service 
to us some clays afterwards, when we were boarded by the Mer- 
cury frigate, but, on exhibition of our documents, immediately per- 
mitted to proceed. On another occasion, however, it availed us 
but little ; we were detained by a cutter privateer from Guernsey, 
manned by a set of ruffians, whose captain, after occupying me for 
two hours with his insults and menaces, at length suffered me to 
pursue my voyage. It is scarcely necessary to advert to another 
detention within four leagues of Santa Cruz in Teneriffe, by the 
Tartar lugger, also from Guernsey, unless for the sake of contrast- 
ing the handsome treatment I experienced from its commander, 
with the brutal conduct of the other Guernsej r -man. 

We touched at Santa Cruz solely for the purpose of taking in 
water, having sailed from Cadiz with a strong Levant or easterly 
wind, which, as it was a rare advantage, did not allow us time to 
lay in a stock for the voyage. During our short stay here, I was 
permitted, after undergoing an examination, to collect some geolo- 
gical specimens ; they were all of the volcanic species, intermixed 
with olivin and augite. 

Continuing our course to the southwards, we had for some days 
a strong trade wind, but were afterwards exposed to a succession 
of those calms which frequently prevail between the 7th and 2d 
degrees of latitude north of the line. The tediousness of these 
delays was in some degree diverted by immense shoals of bonitos, 



( 6 ) 



albicores, and flying-fish ; numbers of the latter frequently darted 
against our sails and fell on board ; they afforded excellent eatincr. 
The quantity of bonitos we caught filled all our empty barrels, and 
as our ballast was salt, we easily preserved them. Their flesh 
being coarse and dry, cannot be relished without good sauce, and 
for this reason we threw away all except the choice parts. Our 
attention was constantly engaged by the numbers of these lively 
fish swimming and darting in all directions, and by the efforts of 
the poor defenceless flying-fish to avoid them. The latter, leaping 
out of the water for safety, frequently fell into their pursuers' 
mouths, which were ever erect and open to receive their prey. 
At night the vivid phosphorescent appearance of these countless 
shoals, ever in quick motion, bore a near resemblance to that of 
a fire-brand whirled violently about. They attended our course for 
twelve or fourteen days, and at length forsook us, much to our 
regret, as they had so long constituted our sole amusement. 

Wearied and exhausted by frequent calms under a vertical sun, 
we were at length relieved by a breeze ; and crossing the line at lon- 
gitude 23 Q W. had a favourable passage to the mouth of the great 
river Plata, our entrance into which we were enabled to judge 
from the muddy colour of the water and from numerous flights of 
sea-birds, long before we saw land. 

Our passage was impeded by a strong south-west gale, in these 
parts called a Pampero, which blew for several days, and obliged us 
to lay the vessel to during the whole time; we shipped so much 
water that our boats were hourly in danger of being washed away, 
and, owing to the stupid carelessness of a Genoese sailor, our cabin 
was at one time half-filled. The gale at length ceased ; a breeze 
sprung up to the eastward, and we made all possible sail : after run- 
ning a south-west course for two days, we found soundings at thirty- 
five fathoms water, and on the second day following at noon, saw the 
high land of Maldonado at a distance of about nine leagues, and the 
Isle of Lobos four or five leagues ahead. Passing through the chan^- 



( 7 ) 



nel which divides them, we encountered a strong breeze, and soon 
afterwards found ourselves in a very critical situation ; a dark night, a 
heavy and increasing gale of wind, the violent uncertain currents 
of the river, the English bank to the south, and the Isle of Flores 
to the west-north-west. The captain knew nothing of the navi- 
gation, and I was obliged to command instead of advising. I 
caused the vessel to be laid to, under the smallest and most 
manageable sail possible ; kept the lead continually going and 
wore the vessel every two hours. The night was one of the most 
dreadful I ever witnessed ; the moon was over-cast by heavy black 
clouds pouring torrents of rain, accompanied with terrible lightning 
and loud thunder; the waves, owing to the shallowness of the 
water (seven and eight fathoms), appeared like breakers. At day- 
light our prospect was not much bettered ; a dense fog hindered us 
from seeing at all beyond the vessel, and the conflict of the wind 
with the current rendered the waves still more boisterous. In the 
course of the morning the thunder moderated, but the stormy rain 
continued; no object was distinctly visible; hidden rocks and 
sand-banks lay on each side of us ; and we were approaching a 
channel not a mile wide, rendered more formidable by a strong 
and ever-shifting current. In consequence of incessant exertion I 
was in a most exhausted state, but the captain and crew were 
incapable of affording me a moment's respite; danger seemed to 
have deprived them of their reason, and they looked on all that 
passed with a fearful and senseless apathy. I had often had occa- 
sion to observe the intrepid constancy and activity of British 
seamen in similar emergencies, and I could not but be struck with 
the contrast. We shipped several heavy seas which had the 
appearance of broken-water, and hence it again became necessary 
to keep the lead continually going. At eleven A. M., on finding 
that we shoaled our water extremely fast, being already in four 
fathom and over very hard ground, I was convinced that we were 
at the head of the English bank, and therefore immediately wore on 



( 8 ) 



the other tack toward the island of Flores. The fog prevented us 
from taking a meridional observation, but at three P. M. it cleared, 
and to our great joy we saw Monte Video before us at four leagues 
distance. Our seamen now took heart, and began to be more 
expert ; we made all sail, but, the wind gradually declining, and 
a strong current setting directly from the harbour, we were obliged 
in the evening to let go our anchor about two leagues outside the 
port. Night set in, accompanied by heavy gusts of wind, which 
required me to be constantly upon deck, as Spanish seamen know 
nothing that belongs to an anchor-watch, and heartily grudge the 
care and labour that it demands. Hence they did not fail to 
bestow ill-natured sneers and gibes on me and my nation for the 
trouble I caused them, in calling them up to let go another anchor, 
little reflecting that had it not been ready ere they left the deck, we 
should in all probability have been wrecked. Another twenty -four 
hours of unfavourable weather ensued, and on the day following we 
entered the harbour of Monte Video. 

The hardships I experienced in reaching this ill-fated port, were 
a fit prelude to the misfortunes that awaited me there. We were 
bound for Buenos Ayres, but my captain, who in London and at 
Cadiz had assured me that he had the experience of a pilot in the 
Rio de la Plata, proved totally ignorant of its navigation, and 
urged this circumstance as his reason for putting into Monte Video. 
Happy should I have been, if this had been the only instance of 
his ignorance ; he gave an ill-judged and blundering report of me 
to the governor, and the sailors affirmed that I was an Englishman, 
declaring at the same time that we had passed an English squadron 
under Spanish colours. This statement was enough to whet the 
avarice of the governor, who, notwithstanding I had served the 
colony, in bringing a cargo which was then much wanted, and 
every article of which had paid legal duty in Cadiz, ordered me 
to be thrown into prison. I was placed in close confinement on 
board a wretched sloop of war ; and though my health was much 



( 9 ) 



impaired in consequence of exertion during the voyage, I was 
denied every comfort, except such indulgences as the officers, who 
lived on shore, could at times clandestinely allow. Unprovided 
with letters of recommendation to any person in the town, and 
destitute of the means of making myself known, I had the morti- 
fication to see the property I had brought with me seized, and my 
papers taken away to be searched and examined. I was enjoined to 
make declarations, and to give evidence against myself, to men whose 
sole wish was to find a pretext for criminating me. After three or 
four examinations, it was found that I had sailed from Cadiz with a 
cargo of goods, marked, manifested, and duly registered, as Spanish ; 
nor could any circumstance be discovered as a ground of accusation 
against me, but the strong suspicion that I was an Englishman, and 
on that account could not be too harshly treated. I had no lenity to 
expect from the governor, nor indeed from any of his advisers, who 
were, for the most part, men of the lowest order, refugees from Old Spain 
inconsequence of criminal prosecutions. The rest of his associates 
were the captains and officers of two Spanish privateers, all French- 
men, whose natural prejudices, no doubt, contributed to foment his 
antipathy against me. My sole reliance was on the consignee of the 
cargo, who at length arrived from Buenos Ayres ; but instead of 
clearing up the affair, he joined my persecutors, knowing that if he 
gave security he should have the cargo delivered to him. This 
favourable opportunity he failed not to embrace ; he sold the pro- 
perty, and withheld the proceeds under the pretext, that he could not 
pay them over to me while I remained a prisoner. This conduct 
to one who had depended on him for support, and who relied on his 
continually delusive promises of assistance, proves him to be one of 
those mean and spiritless beings whose station in society is mid-way 
between the simpleton and the knave. 

My confinement would probably have been long, but for the good 
services of a Limenian who attended me during my illness in Cadiz, 
and who came over in the vessel with me. He was the only person I 

c 



( io ) 



was permitted to see ; and he interested himself so much in my behalf, 
that an old gentlewoman with whom he had formed an acquaintance, 
determined, on hearing my story, to procure my liberation, and 
never rested until she had procured two bondsmen to answer for my 
appearance when called for. 

The treatment I experienced, while in prison, is one of the many 
instances of oppression which disgraced the administration of the 
governor, Pasqual Ruis Huidobro. M is well known that his political 
conduct was entirely subservient to the interests of the French, and 
that he lost no opportunity of evincing his attachment to their cause. 
As a further proof of this, I may state, that he caused all the cap- 
tured English seamen to be confined in the prison, and, although its 
spacious court was doubly grated and guarded, he debarred them the 
use of it, and ordered them to be shut up night and day in a small 
room, the door of which was never opened except when victuals 
were given them. 

Aware of his severity, and knowing that I was the only prisoner at 
large, I was very circumspect, and strove to guard my conduct and 
discourse against artful misconstruction ; but I had the misfortune to 
incur his displeasure at a moment when I least suspected it, by a very 
trivial, and certainly unintentional offence, Some written papers had 
been stuck up in various parts of the town, by order of Government, 
inviting foreign seamen to enter the service. Returning home at 
midnight from a visit, I observed one of these placards ; the rain, 
which was pouring very fast, had partly detached it from the wall, 
and it was blown to and fro by the wind. Curious to examine the 
contents of a paper that had attracted the attention of many per- 
sons in the course of the day, I took it down and carried it home 
with me ; this was observed by an old Spaniard of the name of 
Dias, who gloried much in having it in his power to injure me, though 
a perfect stranger to him, and unconscious of having done any thing 
to excite his malice. At the instance of this man an order was issued 
by the governor for my arrest ; I was roused from my bed by the 



( 11 ) 



officers, and again hurried to prison. What charges were brought 
against me I could learn only by report ; they were vague and inde- 
finite, and no opportunity of answering them was allowed me. After 
a close confinement of six weeks, during which period my case was 
laid before the Viceroy of Buenos Ayres, I was again suffered to be 
at large on payment of a fee of three hundred dollars. It was to the 
humane exertions of my advocate, seconded by those of the Lime- 
nian and the lady before-mentioned, that I owed this mitigation of 
my captivity, and I gratefully acknowledge that they made every 
provision in their power to render my situation comfortable. 

During my stay atMonte Video another adventure befel me, which 
had well nigh cost me my life ; I am induced to relate it, by reason 
of the insight it gives into the character of a certain class of the 
people. » I had gone on a shooting excursion to the promontory 
opposite Monte Video, with my much-valued friend Captain Collet, 
owner of two or three large American ships, and M. Godefroy, a 
merchant, resident in the town. After some hours sport we met 
a party of four Spaniards, among whom were Mr. Ortiga, the 
consignee of Captain Collet, and a person called Manuel d'lago. 
Our friend M. Godefroy had some conversation with them at a short 
distance from us, and on his return gave us to understand that 
D'lago had said it would not cost him above five hundred dollars to 
send a pair of bullets through me, and that had I been alone he 
would not have scrupled to do it. For this blood-thirsty insinuation 
I was at a loss to conjecture any motive, nor knew I the man, ex- 
cept by report, which designated him as a captain of militia, 
extremely rigorous in his treatment of the unfortunate English, when- 
ever his turn to mount guard at the prison subjected them to his 
authority. 

We pursued our diversion; he and his party meanwhile arrived at 
the Signal-house, about three miles above us, where they took re- 
freshment. Some space of time afterward we observed a horse- 
soldier ride down towards us, who on approaching eyed us with a 

c 2 



( 12 ) 

look of great suspicion. I had some little talk with him, having 
frequently seen him there before. He returned directly to the 
Guard-house, and an hour afterwards five blandengues, or horse- 
soldiers, sallied from the place at full speed, and, surrounding us, 
demanded our arms at the peril of our lives. Each of us obeyed, 
by surrendering his fowling-piece, M. Godefroy at the same time 
enquiring the cause of this extraordinary treatment; but they ordered 
him to be silent, and to march on along with us, or they would tie him 
on horse-back. We were conducted to the Guard-house, and de- 
livered (the officer being absent) to the corporal on guard, a fiery 
old Spaniard, who ordered us into an inner room and placed two 
sentinels at the door. The fellow was so stifled by passion, that we 
could not get an answer from him ; at every moment he was drawing 
a long sabre which hung at his side, and venting his fury in the 
most abusive language. After a full half-hour of expostulation on 
our part, and menace on his, M. Godefroy obtained a hearing from 
him, and, declaring that he was a merchant, married and actually 
settled in Monte Video, begged to know by what authority and 
under what pretext he was imprisoned. The corporal, on learning 
this, sent a soldier to the officer on guard, and while waiting his 
return, related that DTago had described us as Englishmen be- 
longing to a privateer, who had landed with an intention to blow up 
the powder-magazines, kill bullocks, and plunder the natives. It 
was evident from his manner that he was very willing to believe this 
account, and that by treating us with severity he hoped to display 
his zeal for the service, and obtain promotion. M. Godefroy 's tes- 
timony being at length attended to, another soldier was dispatched 
to DTago's party, who were not yet embarked, with notice that one 
of us affirmed himself to be a resident in Monte Video. This they 
did not contradict, but persisted in their accusations of the rest of 
our party; Mr. Ortiga denied any knowledge of Captain Collet, 
probably imagining that, in case of our conviction, he should benefit 
by the cargoes which the latter had consigned to him ; and for 

9 



( 13 ) 



me, whom they denounced as a spy, no punishment in their opinion 
could be too ignominious. On the return of the soldier, the corporal 
thought proper to release M. Godefroy, who took our boat to cross 
the port to Monte Video with the intention of procuring an order 
for our liberation; but they had scarcely sailed when a gust of wind 
arose, and as he and the two boys he had with him could not 
manage the sails, they were nearly overset, and after considerable 
danger were picked up by a ship in the road. Meanwhile Captain 
Collet and I remained in strict custody, and at every syllable of 
complaint we uttered, the corporal brandished his sabre over our 
heads, roared out for the guard, and vociferated the most oppro- 
brious language against the English. Thus threatened at every mo- 
ment with assassination, we withdrew into a corner of the room, and 
quietly waited until the officer on guard arrived, when Ave were con- 
ducted in great form, between two men with drawn swords, into the 
room where he sat to receive us. Nothing could exceed my joyful 
surprise at recognizing in the officer an excellent and worthy friend, 
whom I had often visited at his chacara or farm, and who had 
given me repeated proofs of his liberal disposition and intelligent 
mind. His surprize exceeded mine ; for instead of plunderers or 
spies, such as report had described us, he found an American mer- 
chant and a prisoner at large under bail. He was deeply grieved 
and ashamed at the treatment we had met with, liberated us im- 
mediately, mounted us on his own horses, and appointed a trusty 
person to attend us to Monte Video, Avhere we arrived at eight in 
the evening. The disappointment of the corporal appeared as deep 
as his rage had been violent ; and the recollection of his conduct 
operated on us as a warning against persons of his class, who rarely 
see an opportunity of doing mischief to a stranger without a strong 
inclination to avail themselves of it. 

During the time I was at large, I had leisure to acquire some 
knowledge of Monte Video. It is a tolerably well-built town, 
standing on a gentle elevation at the extremity of a small peninsula, 



( 14 ) 



and is walled entirely round. Its population amounts to between 15,000 
and 20,000 souls. The harbour, although shoal, and quite open to 
the pamperos, is the best in the Rio de la Plata ; it has a very soft 
bottom of deep mud. When the wind continues for some time at 
north-east, ships drawing twelve feet water are frequently a-ground 
for several days, so that the harbour cannot be called a good one 
for vessels above three hundred or four hundred tons. 

There are but few capital buildings ; the town in general consists 
of houses of one story, paved with brick, and provided with very 
poor conveniences. In the square is a cathedral, very handsome, 
but awkwardly situated ; opposite to it, is an edifice divided into a 
town-house or cabildo, and a prison. The streets, having no pave- 
ment, are always either clouded with dust or loaded with mud, 
as the weather happens to be dry or wet. In seasons of drought the 
want of conduits for water is a serious inconvenience, the well, which 
principally supplies the town, being two miles distant. 

Provisions here are cheap and in great abundance. Beef in par- 
ticular is very plentiful, and, though rarely fat or fine, makes ex- 
cellent soup. The best parts of the meat may, indeed, be called tole- 
rable, but they are by no means tender. The pork is not eatable. 
Such is the profusion of flesh-meat, that the vicinity for two miles 
round, and even the purlieus of the town itself, present filthy 
spectacles of bones and raw flesh at every step, which feed immense 
flocks of sea-gulls, and in summer breed myriads of flies, to the 
great annoyance of the inhabitants, who are obliged at table to have 
a servant or two continually employed in fanning the dishes with 
feathers, to drive away those troublesome intruders. 

Of the character of the inhabitants of Monte Video, I am perhaps 
not qualified to speak impartially, having been treated with un- 
merited harshness, deprived of my property, and repeatedly per- 
secuted on the most groundless suspicion. These abuses, however, 
are solely chargeable on the governor and on the persons imme- 
diately under his influence; and I am bound in fairness to avow that 



( J5 ) 

I did not perceive any disposition in the generality of the people to 
injure or oppress me. From individuals in the town I received all 
the assistance which disinterested benevolence could afford to a per- 
son in my critical situation ; and were I, from the impulse of grati- 
tude, to judge of the whole by a part, I should say, that the inha- 
bitants of Monte Video, particularly the Creolians, are humane and 
well disposed, when not actuated by political or religious prejudices. 
Their habits of life are much the same with those of their brethren 
in Old Spain, and seem to proceed from the same remarkable union 
of two opposite but not incompatible qualities, indolence and tem- 
perance. The ladies are generally affable and polite, extremely 
fond of dress, and very neat and cleanly in their persons. They 
adopt the English costume at home, but go abroad usually in black, 
and always covered with a large veil or mantle. At mass they in- 
variably appear in black silk, bordered with deep fringes. They 
delight in conversation, for which their vivacity eminently qualifies 
them, and they are very courteous to strangers. 

The chief trade of Monte Video consists in hides, tallow, and 
dried beef; the two former of these articles are exported to Europe, 
and the latter is sent to the West Indies, especially to the Havannah. 
Coarse copper from Chili in square cakes is sometimes shipped here, 
as well as a herb called Matte from Paraguay, the infusion of which 
is as common a beverage in these parts as tea is in England. 

The inhabitants were by no means opulent before the English 
took the garrison, but through the misfortunes of the latter at 
Buenos Ayres, and the losses of our commercial adventurers by 
ill-judged and imprudent speculations, they were considerably 
enriched. The great prospects indulged in England, before the 
expedition to the Plata, of immense profits by trade to that river, 
have generally ended in ruin ; very few, indeed, of the speculators 
have escaped without considerable loss. Property, once litigated, 
might be considered in a fair way for confiscation ; and in case of 
its having been deposited until certain questions were decided, 



( 16 ) 



restitution was generally obtained at the loss of one half. It fre- 
quently happened that goods detained in the Custom-houses or 
lodged in private stores in the river were opened, and large quanti- 
ties stolen. The party on whom suspicion seemed most reasonably 
to fall was the consignee, who, even with a few cargoes, was 
generally observed to get rich very rapidly. Not contented with 
the profits accruing from his commission, he seldom scrupled to take 
every advantage which possession of the property afforded him, of 
furthering his own interests at the expence of his correspondent. 
The dread of a legal process could be but a slight check upon him, 
for in the Spanish courts of justice, as well as in others, a native and 
a stranger are seldom upon equal terms. Other circumstances have 
concurred to enrich the inhabitants of Monte Video. It is a fact which 
I afterwards ascertained, that the English exported thither, goods to 
the amount of a million and a half sterling, a small portion of which, 
on the restoration of the place to the Spaniards, was re-shipped for 
the Cape of Good Hope and the West Indies ; the remainder was 
for the most part sacrificed at whatever price the Spaniards chose to 
give. As their own produce advanced in proportion as ours lowered 
in price, those among them who speculated gained considerably. The 
holders of English goods sold their stock at upwards of fifty per cent, 
profit immediately after the evacuation of the place. 

The climate of Monte Video is humid. The weather, in the 
winter months (June, July, and August), is at times boisterous, and 
the air in that season is generally keen and piercing. In summer 
the serenity of the atmosphere is frequently interrupted by tre- 
mendous thunder-storms, preceded by dreadful lightning, which 
frequently damages the shipping, and followed by heavy rain which 
sometimes destroys the harvest. The heat is troublesome, and is 
rendered more so to strangers by the swarms of mosquitoes, which 
it engenders in such numbers that they infest every apartment. 

The town stands on a basis of granite, the feldspar of which is 
for the most part of an opaque milk-white colour, in a decom- 



( 17 ) 



posing state ; in some places it is found of a flesh-red colour and 
crystallized. The mica is generally large and foliated, in many 
places imperfectly crystallized. It is obvious that the excessive 
quantity of mud in the harbour and throughout the banks of the 
river cannot have been formed from this stratum. The high mount 
on the opposite side of the bay, which is crowned with a Light- 
house, and gives name to the town, is principally composed of clay- 
slate in laminee perpendicular to the horizon. This substance ap- 
pears much like basalt in texture, but its fracture is less conchoidal ; it 
decomposes into an imperfect species of wakke, and ultimately into 
ferruginous argil. Beds of clay, from which flows much water, are 
observable in various parts of the mountain. 

The vicinity of Monte Video is agreeably diversified with low 
gently-sloping hills, and long valleys watered by beautiful rivulets ; 
but the prospects they afford are rarely enlivened by traces of cul- 
tivation ; few enclosures are seen except the gardens of the principal 
merchants. The same defect appears in a north-east direction from 
the town, where similar varieties of hill, valley, and water prevail, 
and seem to want only the embellishment of sylvan scenery to com- 
plete the landscape. Some wood, indeed, grows on the margin of 
the Riachuelo, which is used for the building of hovels and for fuel. 
There is a pleasant stream about ten leagues from Monte Video 
called the Louza, the banks of which seem to invite the labour of 
the planter, and would certainly produce abundance of timber*. It 
is to be remarked that the almost entire want of this article here, 
occasions great inconvenience and expence : wood for mechanical 
purposes is extremely scarce, and planks are so dear that hardly 
one house with a boarded floor is to be found. 



* Here I found mint, caraway, and many other aromatic herbs, growing wild in the 
greatest luxuriance. The ftratum of vegetable earth was at least two yards thick. 



D 



( 18 ) 



CHAP. II. 

Journey to Barriga Negra. — Geology of the Country. — Limestone, and 
Mode of burning it. — Horned Cattle. — Peons —Horses. — Defective 
State of Agriculture. — Manners of the Inhabitants. — Dress. — Wild 
Animals. — Monte Video taken by the British. — My Return thither. 

the arrival of General BeresforcTs expedition in the river, I 
was again ordered into close confinement, but my advocate 
obtained permission for me to be sent into the interior, under a stipu- 
lation not to approach within forty leagues of Monte Video. This 
removal seemed for the moment to shut out all hope of obtaining 
my liberty, and at the same time threatened to expose me to fresh 
dangers, but I derived some consolation from the generous offers of 
shelter and protection made to me by a worthy Spaniard named Don 
Juan Martinez, whose establishment, not more than fifty leagues 
from the lake of Meni, was situated at the full distance prescribed in 
the orders respecting me. A retreat so remote and unfrequented 
offered few amusements to relieve the tediousness of banishment, but 
it at least afforded the prospect of a wider range for mineralogical ob- 
servation, and of ampler leisure to attend to this my favourite pursuit. 

In the course of the journey thither, my attention was principally 
engaged by the wild and solitary aspect of the country. About 
twenty-five leagues north-east from Monte Video, I observed an 
irregular ridge of granite mountains in a direction nearly north and 
south, and the country from this distance gradually assumes a 
rugged appearance. Mica is very common upon the road, and in 
some places quartz ; on one hill I gathered several detached crystals 
of the latter substance. The ravines of these stony wilds and the 
wooded margins of the rivers afford shelter to many ferocious animals, 



( 19 ) 



such as jaguars, here called tygers, lions, and ounces. Here are also 
great numbers of wild dogs which breed in the rocks, and at times 
make great havoc among the young cattle. The farms in this 
district, for the most part, include tracts of land from twenty to 
thirty miles in length by half that extent in breadth, watered by 
pleasing streams. Vast herds of cattle are bred upon them ; it is 
calculated that each square league sustains 1500 or 2000 head. 

At the distance of about forty leagues from Monte Video, in the 
direction above mentioned, the range of hills gradually lessens and 
disappears ; the country opens finely on the left, and is intersected 
by numerous rivulets. After crossing several of these we arrived at 
the head of a little brook called Polancos, which a few miles below, 
assumes the name of Barriga Negra. It there receives several small 
streams, and in the course of ten leagues is augmented by the con- 
fluence of some others ; becoming thus a considerable river, about 
as large as the Trent at Gainsborough, it is denominated Godoy, 
but on passing into the Portugueze territories it changes its name to 
that of Zebolyati and flows into the Lagun Meni. Near the junction 
of two rivulets, that form the Barriga Negra, stands the great lime- 
kiln of my friend, in whose house I took up my residence, and was 
received with that kindness and sincere hospitality which in an in- 
stant dispelled every doubt from my mind, and excited in me sen- 
timents of gratitude that were every day more deeply impressed in 
my heart. 

Having become thoroughly domesticated in my new abode, I began 
to take excursions into the surrounding district and the parts beyond 
it. The country in general may be termed stony and mountainous, 
though its inequalities do not exceed those of Derbyshire. No 
traces of either volcanic or alluvial matter are to be found ; the solid 
rock frequently appears on the surface, and in many places projects 
in masses of various sizes. The mountains and rocks are of granite ; 
no veins of metallic substance have hitherto been discovered, but 
fine red and yellow jasper, chalcedony, and quartz, are not unfre- 

d 2 



( 20 ) 



quently found loose on the surface. Some fossils of the asbestos 
kind and some very poor oxides of iron are likewise to be met with 
occasionally. The bases of many of the conical granite mountains 
are overlaid with (apparently) primitive lime-stone of an obscure blue 
colour, in laminae ; I found in this substance many capillary veins of 
calx-spar, and sometimes crystals of pyrites. In one part of the 
vicinity there is a plain about half a mile square, on the surface of 
which are found large quantities of white lime-stone in nodules ; it 
is of a very close texture, but being considered inferior in quality to 
the other species it is never converted into lime. The summits of 
these mountains are no where calcareous, excepting those of one 
ridge, the singular appearance of which induced me to trace it as 
far as was practicable. The lime-stone on these summits is of a 
close compact kind, united to transparent quartz in a tabular form, 
standing, as it were, in laminae perpendicular to the horizon, and 
thus presenting to the view a number of upright slabs somewhat 
similar to the grave-stones in a country church-yard. This singular 
ridge apparently commences at a mountain of very unusual form, 
and, extending about two miles, in which it crosses two or three 
valleys, terminates in a ravine of considerable depth. No vestige 
of calcareous crystallization appeared in this lime-stone*. It is 
singular to remark, that the cavities formed by the laminae afford 
refuge for reptiles, particularly rattle-snakes ; the person employed 
by Mr. Martinez in getting the stone destroyed upwards of twenty- 
seven serpents of that species in the course of a few weeks. 

The lime-stone is loosened by the wedge and lever, and brought 
away in large slabs to the kilns, where it is broken into fragments of 
a convenient size, and burnt with wood. The kilns are capacious, 
but so badly constructed that the process of calcination is very 



* At a small town called Minas, ten leagues from Maldonado, I was informed that there 
was a lead mine in lime-stone. A piece of that substance was sent to me ; it was flesh- 
coloured, granular, and close in texture. 



( 21 ) 



slow and tedious. The lime, when slaked, is measured, put into 
sacks made of green hides, and sent in large carts, draAvn by oxen, 
principally to Colonia, Monte Video, and Buenos Ayres. 

Barriga Negra is distant about 160 miles north-east from Monte 
Video, about 120 from Maldonado, and 90 from the town of Minas. 
The country around it is mountainous, well watered, aud not cles- 
titude of wood. The banks of the streams are thickly covered with 
trees, rarely, however, of large size, for the creeping plants, inter- 
weaving with the shoots, check their growth and form an impe- 
netrable thicket. Here are numbers of great breeding estates, 
many of which are stocked with from 60,000 to 200,000 head of 
cattle. These are guarded principally by men from Paraguay called 
Peons, who live in hovels built for the purpose at convenient dis- 
tances. Ten thousand head are allotted to four or five Peons, whose 
business it is to collect them every morning and evening, and once 
or twice a month to drive them into pens where they are kept for a 
night. The cattle by this mode of management are soon tamed ; a 
ferocious or vicious beast I never saw among them. Breeding is alone 
attended to; neither butter nor cheese is made, and milk is scarcely 
known as an article of food. The constant diet of the people, 
morning, noon, and night, is beef, eaten almost always without 
bread, and frequently without salt. This habitual subsistence on 
strong food would probably engender diseases, were it not corrected 
by copious draughts of an infusion of their favourite herb Matt6, 
which are frequently taken. 

The dwellings of the Peons are in general very wretched, the walls 
being formed by a few upright posts interwoven with small branches 
of trees, plastered with mud inside and out, and the roof thatched 
with long grass and rushes. The door is also of wicker-work, 
or, in its stead, a green hide stretched on sticks and removeable 
at pleasure. The furniture of these poor hovels consists of a few 
scalps of horses, which are made to serve for seats ; and of a 

9 



( 22 ) 



stretched hide to lie upon. The principal if not the sole cooking 
utensil is a rod or spit of iron stuck in the ground in an ob- 
lique position, so as to incline over the fire. The beef when 
spitted on this instrument is left to roast until the part next the fire 
is supposed to be done enough, then a twist is given to the rod, 
which is occasionally repeated, until the whole is cooked. The 
juices of the meat, by this mode of roasting, help to mend the fire, 
and indeed the people seem to think that they are fit for nothing 
else. The meat, which is naturally poor and coarse, being thus 
dried to a cake, bears little affinity to the boasted roast beef of 
England. Fuel, in some parts, is so extremely scarce that the fol- 
lowing strange expedient is resorted to for a supply. As the mares 
in this country are kept solely for breeding, and are never trained to 
labour, they generally exceed the due proportion ; a flock of them 
is frequently killed, and their carcases, with the exception of the 
hides and tails, are used as firing. 

The Peons are chiefly emigrants from Paraguay, and it is a sin- 
gular fact that, among the numbers that are here settled, very few 
women are to be found. A person may travel in these parts for 
da} r s together without seeing or hearing of a single female in the 
course of his journey. To this circumstance may be attributed the 
total absence of domestic comfort in the dwellings of these wretched 
men, and the gloomy apathy observable in their dispositions and 
habits. It is true that the mistress of an estate may occasionally 
visit it for a few months, but she is obliged during her stay to live 
in great seclusion, on account of the dreadful consequences to be 
apprehended from being so exposed. 

The dexterous mode in which the Peons catch their cattle, by 
throwing a noose over them has been frequently detailed, but cer- 
tainly no description can do full justice to their agility. They throw 
with equal precision and effect, whether at full gallop or at rest. 
Their method of catching horses by means of balls attached to 



( 23 ) 



leather thongs, is similar to the former but more unerring ; scarcely 
an instance has been known of its failure, except in those frequent 
trials which are requisite to acquire perfect skill in the practice. 

They have a very singular and simple way of training mules 
and horses to draw light carts, coaches, &c. No harness is 
made use of; a saddle or pad is girted on, and a leather thong is 
fastened to the girth on one side, so that the animal moving for- 
ward, with his body in a rather oblique direction, keeps his legs 
clear of the apparatus which is attached to him, and draws with a 
freedom and an agility that in a stranger excite great surprise. A 
similar contrivance is used in the catching of cattle. The Peon 
fastens one end of his lazo (or noosed thong) to the girth of his 
horse, who soon learns to place himself in such an attitude as to 
draw the ox which his rider has caught, and even should the latter 
dismount, he keeps the thong on the stretch. 

The horses in this country are very spirited, and perform almost 
incredible labour. They seldom work longer than a week at a time, 
being then turned out to pasture for months together. Their sole 
food is grass, and the treatment they meet with from their masters is 
most harsh and unfeeling. They are frequently galloped until their 
generous fire is spent, and they drop through exhaustion and fa- 
tigue. The make of the bridle is alone sufficient to torture the 
animal, being of the heavy Spanish fashion. They are never shod. 
The girths of the saddles are of a curious construction ; they are 
generally formed of shreds of green hide, or of the sinew of the 
neck ; the middle part is twenty inches broad, terminated at each 
end by an iron ring. One of these ends is made fast to the saddle 
by its ring ; to the other side of the saddle is attached a third ring 
and a pliable strap, which, being passed through it and the girth- 
ring three or four times, affords the rider great purchase, and enables 
him to gird the saddle very tight, which is thus kept so firm in its 
place that a crupper is unnecessary, and indeed is never used. 



( 24 ) 



Trained horses are here from five to seven dollars each ; horned 
cattle, in good condition, by the herd of a thousand at two dollars 
a head; mares at three rials (Is. 6d. sterling) each. Sheep are very 
scarce and never eaten ; they are kept by some families merely for 
the sake of their wool, which is made into flocks for bedding. It is 
worthy of remark that in the remote parts of the interior, where no 
settlements have been made, the cattle are found of a dark dirty 
brown colour, except on a small part of the belly, which is white, 
but when they become domesticated they produce breeds of a 
lighter colour, with hides beautifully spotted and variegated. The 
fine herds bred in many parts of this district have often tempted the 
Portugueze to make predatory incursions, and the country being 
accessible by fine open passes to the frontier, as well as to the north 
side of the Plata, these violations of territory have been carried on 
to a very serious extent. So frequent were they at one period that 
it became necessary to appoint a military force to parade the boun- 
daries and to defend the Spanish settlements against these inroads. 

In taking a general view of the country, a stranger cannot but 
observe, with regret, that while nature has been profuse in her 
blessings, the inhabitants have been neglectful in the improvement 
of them. Here is, for instance, abundance of excellent clay and 
plenty of wood on the margin of the rivers, yet it is rare to meet 
with an inclosure, even for a kitchen garden, much more so for a 
corn-field. They generally choose their grounds for tillage by the 
bank of a rivulet, so as to have one side or sometimes two sides 
bounded by it ; the remainder is fenced in the most clumsy and 
bungling manner imaginable. Ploughing is performed by the help 
of two oxen yoked to a crooked piece of wood, about four inches in 
diameter, and pointed at the end. After the ground has been 
rooted up, the wheat is sown, without any previous attempt to clear 
it from noxious seeds. While it grows up, it is never weeded ; so 
that wild oats, poppies, and other pernicious herbs, thriving among 



( 25 ) 



it in thick luxuriance, obstruct the sun's rays and hinder it from 
ripening kindly. Indian corn, beans, melons, &c. are all treated 
in a similar way. The wheat, when ripe, is cut down with sickles 
and gathered into heads or sheaves. A circular pen of from 40 to 
60 yards in diameter is then formed with rails and hides ; in the 
centre of this enclosure is placed a quantity of about 100 or 200 
quarters of wheat in the straw. The pile is so formed as to have the 
ears on the outside as much as possible. A small quantity is pulled 
down towards the circumference of the circle, and a herd of about 
twenty mares are driven in, which, being untamed, are easily 
frightened and made to gallop round. At this pace they are kept 
by means of whips for four or five hours, until the corn is trod out 
of the ears, and the straw is completely reduced. Another parcel of 
the sheaves is then pulled down, and a fresh herd of mares is let in, 
and this operation is repeated until the whole heap is reduced, and 
the straw is broken as small as chaff. In this state it is left until a 
brisk wind happens to rise ; and then the winnowing is performed by 
emptying baskets of the mixed grain and chaff at an elevation of 
eight feet from the ground. While the chaff is borne away by the 
current of air, the grain falls, and at the close of the operation, is 
sewed up in green hides. In this state it is sent to the sea-ports, 
where a considerable quantity of biscuit is prepared for shipping. 
It is obvious, that by the above mode of separating the grain, a con- 
siderable quantity must be lost by abrasion, and by mixture with a 
large portion of earth which cannot be blown away by the wind. 

The climate and soil are equally favourable for the growth of 
grapes, apples, peaches, and in short every species of fruit belonging 
to the temperate zone, but these are known here only as rarities. 
That inestimable root, the potatoe, would thrive abundantly, if once 
introduced ; but, though much has been said in recommendation of • 
it, the people remain totally averse to this or any other proposal 
for improving their means of subsistence, and seem to wish for 
nothing beyond the bare necessaries of life. Indeed the state of 



( 26 ) 



society among them weakens those ties which naturally attach men 
to the soil on which they are accustomed to subsist. The Peons, 
brought from Paraguay in their infancy, grow up to the age of man- 
hood in a state of servitude, uncheered by domestic comfort ; at 
that period they generally wander in search of employment toward 
the coast, where money is in greater plenty. They are for the most 
part an honest and harmless race, though equally as liable, from the 
circumstances of their condition, to acquire habits of gambling and 
intoxication*, as the higher classes of the people, numbers of whom 
fall victims to those seductive vices. The various evils hence result- 
ing are multiplied by the lax administration of the laws ; even in case 
of murder the criminal has little to fear if he can escape to a distance 
of twenty or thirty leagues; he there lives in obscurity, probably for 



* Such is their excessive propensity to gambling, that they frequently carry cards in their 
pocket, and, when an opportunity occurs, form parties, and retire to a convenient place, 
where one of them spreads his pancho or mantle on the ground, in lieu of a table. When 
the loser has parted with his money, he will stake his clothes, so that the game generally 
continues until one of them goes away almost naked. This bad practice often leads to 
serious consequences. I once observed a party playing in the neighbourhood of a chapel 
after mass had been said, when the clergyman came and kicked away the cards in order to 
put an end to the game. On this one of the Peons rose up, and retiring a few paces, thus 
accosted the intruder : " Father, I will obey you as a priest ; but" (drawing his knife) 
" you must beware how you molest our diversion." The clergyman knew the desperate 
character of these men too well to remonstrate, and retired very hastily not a little 
chagrined. 

On another occasion a party of Peons were gambling with a Spanish corporal in the 
prison-yard, when a dispute arising, the latter drew his sword on his unarmed antagonist, 
and wounded him so severely in the arm, that he was obliged to undergo amputation the 
day following. 

It is usual for a Peon who has been fortunate at play, to go to Monte Video and clothe 
himself anew in the shop of a slop-seller. While the man is looking out the articles he 
calls for, he deliberately places his dollars on the counter, in separate piles, assigning each 
to its destined purpose. He then retires to a corner, and attires himself; an unfortunate 
comrade invariably attends him, who examines his cast clothes, and, if better than his own, 
puts them on. After passing a few days in idleness, he sets out on his return home, where 
he appears in his new dress. 



( 27 ) 



the remainder of his life, without ever being brought to justice. I 
know not whether this want of vigilance in the magistracy be not a 
temptation for the numerous refugees who seek shelter here, such as 
European Spaniards, who have deserted from the service or have 
been banished for their crimes. These wretches, loaded with guilt, 
flee into the interior, where they seldom fail to find some one or other 
of their countrymen who is willing to give them employment, 
though frequently at the peril of his life. By the corrupt example 
of these refugees, the innocent Creolian is soon initiated in vice, and 
becomes a prey to all those violent passions which are engendered 
and fostered by habitual intoxication. 

The common dress of the people is such as might be expected 
from their indolence and poverty. They generally go without shoes 
and stockings ; indeed as they rarely go on foot, they have seldom 
occasion for shoes. Some of them, particularly the Peons, make a 
kind of boots from the raw skins of young horses, which they fre- 
quently kill for this sole purpose. When the animal is dead, they 
cut the skin round the thigh, about eighteen inches above the gam- 
brel ; having stripped it, they stretch and dress it until it loses the 
hair and becomes quite white. The lower part, which covered the 
joint, forms the heel, and the extremity is tied up in a bunch to 
cover the toes. These boots, when newly finished, are of a delicate 
colour, and very generally admired. The rest of their apparel con- 
sists of a jacket, which is universally worn by all ranks, and a shirt 
and drawers made of a coarse cotton cloth brought from the Brazils. 
Children run about with no dress but their shirts until their fifth or 
sixth year. Their education is very little attended to, and is con- 
fined to mere rudiments ; a man who is able to read and write, is 
considered to have all the learning he can desire. 

Among the many natural advantages which this district possesses, 
are the frequent falls in the rivulets and larger streams, which might 
be converted to various mechanical purposes, if the population were 
more numerous and better instructed. Some of these streams, as 

e 2 



( 28 ) 



was before stated, join the various branches of the Godoy, and flow 
into the lake Meni ; those on the other side the mountains in a 
northerly direction empty themselves principally through the Ria- 
chuelo and the St. Lucia, into the Plata. 

The want of cultivation in this vast territory may be inferred from 
the numbers and varieties of wild animals which breed upon it. 
Tigers, ounces, and lions are common. The former are heavy 
sluggish animals ; their chief prey is the young cattle, which they 
find in such abundance that they rarely attack a man. Hence 
little danger is to be apprehended from them by any person 
travelling on horseback*, unless when inadvertently approaching 
the haunt of a female with young. The ounce has the same cha- 
racter, and the lion is considered less vicious than either. There 
is an animal of the pig kind, called the pig of the woods, which has 
an aperture on its back, whence it emits a most intolerable stench 



* Among the many daring and active feats performed by the Peons, one of the most 
extraordinary of late year?, was the capture of a tiger by a female of that tribe. She was a 
mulatto-woman, brought up in the vicinity of Barriga Negra. She was accustomed at an 
early age to ride horses, and prided herself in doing offices which belonged to the stronger 
sex, such as catching cattle with the noose, killing them, &c. Her form was masculine, 
and she became so inured to men's work, that she was hired as a Peon, and fulfilled that 
office much to the satisfaction of her employers. She was noted for selecting spirited 
horses, and for riding them at full speed. One day on her return from labour, as she was 
passing a rivulet, she observed a large tyger at no great distance. Surprized that the 
animal did not steal away, as is generally the case when he sees a person mounted, she 
drew nearer, still keeping her horse's head from him, so as to be ready to gallop off if 
he should make a spring. He was still inattentive and motionless ; the woman ob- 
serving this, and thinking he ailed something, after some minutes' pause backed her horse 
until she came within twenty yards of him, loosening at the same time her noose from the 
saddle, which she threw most dexterously over his neck, and immediately galloped away 
with him to a considerable distance. Whether ill or not before, she knew he must now be 
dead ; she therefore alighted, flayed him, and carried home the skin as a trophy. The 
animal was above the ordinary size, and not smaller than a calf of six weeks old. This 
exploit was long the talk of the neighbourhood, and I have heard the woman herself re- 
late it. 



( 29 ) 



when closely pursued. If on killing the animal, the part be instan- 
taneously cut out, the flesh affords good eating, but should that 
operation be neglected, even for a short period, the taint con- 
taminates the whole carcase. The domestic pigs are by no means 
good ; they feed so much upon beef that their flesh is very hard and 
coarse. There is an animal of the opossum kind, about the size of 
a rabbit, called a zurilla, the skin of which is streaked black and 
white, and is considered of some value. When attacked, it ejects a 
fetid liquor, which is of so pungent a nature, that if it falls on any 
part of the dress of its pursuers, there is no possibility of getting rid 
of the stench but by continual exposure to the weather for some 
months. The zurilla is very fond of eggs and poultry, and some- 
times enters a house in quest of its prey ; the inhabitants imme- 
diately hasten out and leave their unwelcome visitant in quiet pos- 
session as long as she chooses to stay ; well aware that the slightest 
attempt to drive her out, would expose them to an ejectment from 
the premises for ever. Eagles both of the grey and blue species, as 
well as other birds of prey, are found here in great numbers. Here 
are also parroquets in immense flocks, pigeons, great red-legged 
partridges, small partridges, wild ducks, and wild turkies. Ostriches 
of a large species are very numerous ; they are so fleet and active that 
even when well mounted I could never get near them but by sur- 
prise ; the stroke of their wing is said to be inconceivably strong. 

Here are considerable herds of small deer, which in this fine countiy 
would afford the sportsman excellent diversion, but unfortunately 
the dogs are good for nothing, as there is no attention paid to 
the preservation of the breed. The rivers produce tortoises and 
other amphibious animals, but they are chiefly noted for a variety of 
singularly ugly fish, which afford tolerable but by no means good 
eating. 

During a residence of six months in this remote district, as a 
prisoner at large, or in fact as a welcome guest at the house of a 
most hospitable man, my life passed away in an equable tenour, un- 

9 



( 30 ) 



interrupted by those vicissitudes that elsewhere befel me, and there- 
fore a narrative of it is little calculated to interest the Reader. Rather 
than occupy his attention by relating my various hopes and disap- 
pointments as the prospect of liberation became more or less favour- 
able, I have chosen to present him with the result of some general 
observations on the country, made during the daily excursions which 
I enjoyed through the liberality of my friend. The longer I resided 
in his house, the greater was his kindness to me in allowing me 
those indulgences, and the more did he and his family strive to 
render my exile agreeable. An event at length occurred which at 
once delighted and distressed me, because while it afforded me hopes 
of immediate deliverance, it destroyed for a time the harmony which 
so long subsisted between me and my protector. I allude to the 
taking of Monte Video by the British troops under Sir Samuel 
Auchmuty. 

On hearing of the surrender of the place, I solicited Mr. Martinez 
to liberate me, as I thought myself no longer a prisoner. He 
seemed much astonished at this, and gave me to understand that I con- 
tinued a prisoner, because, not being actually at Monte Video, I 
was still in the power and under the jurisdiction of the Viceroy of 
Buenos Ayres. This worthy man's mind was so distracted by the 
fall of the town, and by the disgrace of the Spanish arms, that he 
secluded himself from society, and avoided all communication with 
me. Under these circumstances I was advised to attempt my es- 
cape, but I felt great repugnance at the idea of thus wounding 
the feelings of a man who had humanely released me from confine- 
ment, and had ever treated me as a brother. Averse to such an act 
of ingratitude, I intreated his amiable wife to intercede for me, and to 
suggest that, on returning to Monte Video, it might be in my power 
to be of service to him. But he rejected the proposal in the most 
vehement manner, and forbade any one to talk to him on the sub- 
ject. I now thought that my liberty was unreasonably denied me, 
and as I saw no probability of obtaining it but through my own 



( 31 ) 



exertions, I determined at all events to make the attempt. After 
deliberating for some days, and consulting with two men who had 
frequently mentioned the subject to me, I decided on my plan of 
escape, and gave them six ounces of gold to provide horses and 
every thing necessary. On the appointed night, all was in readi- 
ness, the horses were saddled, and the men waiting to escort me. 
This moment was one of the most melancholy in my life ; I reflected 
with compunction that, while striving to regain my freedom, I was 
apparently abusing the confidence of a man of honour who had 
done all in his power to merit my friendship. Agitated by these 
emotions, and oppressed by a sadness which the thick gloom of 
the night rendered more heavy, I was walking to and fro in the 
neighbourhood, on the spot appointed for my guides to meet me, 
when a voice, to which I was familiar, accosted me. The person 
was very near me, but owing to the extreme darkness I could not 
see him. He asked me what I was doing there. I replied, " only 
walking about." " Don Juan," said he, " you are going to escape 
to night." I answered, " indeed I am not." He replied, " you are; 
and the men whom you have chosen for your guides are to murder 
you, to seize your money, and to bury you in a ravine about a 
league distant. The man in whom you have most confided has a 
knife concealed in his saddle, with which he is to give you the fatal 
blow." This so staggered me that I was unable, at the moment, to 
make any answer. I felt confident that no one knew of my intended 
departure, except the two men and myself. On asking, " how do 
you know this ?" he replied, " I overheard them talking of it." He 
added, " you know they are both gamblers, and one of them killed 
two men last year." Ere I had recovered my surprise, so as to 
speak again, the man went away. While meditating on the choice 
of evils, namely, whether to run the risk of being murdered and 
thrown into a ravine, or to abandon my design and remain a pri- 
soner, one of my hired Peons came to inform me that the horses 
were waiting. I told him I had a violent pressure at my stomach 



( 32 ) 



and could not ride. He treated this very lightly, and urged me with 
great earnestness to mount at all events. Considering at this 
moment that money was of little value in comparison with my life 
and liberty, I offered to give him two ounces of gold if he would 
perform a piece of service for me, which I would explain to him 
through my room window at midnight. He still used every argu- 
ment to persuade me immediately to set out, but finding that I per- 
sisted in alledging my indisposition as an excuse, he at length 
acceded to my proposal. Having reached my chamber, I wrote to 
a magistrate in Monte Video, who, I knew, would, if he had sur- 
vived the assault of the town, send an order for my liberation. 
Having finished writing, the man appeared at the window according 
to agreement ; I gave him the letter, charged him to convey it 
to Monte Video, and presenting him with two ounces of gold, pro- 
mised him another ounce if he should bring me an answer. He 
departed unknown to any of our good family, and on the fifth day 
following, in the forenoon, returned, to my inexpressible joy, with 
a paper signed by Sr. Francisco Juanico, the magistrate to whom I 
had written, stating that I was free, and ought immediately to pro- 
ceed thither. On receiving this welcome intelligence I hastened to 
Mr. Martinez, and joyfully embracing him, gave him the paper to 
read ; after examining its contents, he observed, that it was nothing 
official, but would avail me as a reasonable pretext for going away, 
to which he cordially acquiesced. He immediately ordered three 
Peons and a trusty old Creolian to accompany me, with twenty- 
five horses, that we might perform the journey with greater expe- 
dition. The best dinner was provided which the time would allow, 
and while partaking of it I received the sincerest congratulations 
on my liberation from my worthy host and his amiable lady. I 
then took an affectionate leave of every branch of this good family, 
expressing my warm acknowledgments of the many obligations they 
had conferred on me. Having joined my guides, we each mounted 
a horse, and, at three in the afternoon, set off at full speed, driving 



( 33 ) 



the rest of the cattle before us. My first horse bore me forty miles, 
and I changed him at ten o'clock. The night was fine, and after 
a rapid but pleasant journey, we forded the river St. Lucia and 
halted at two in the morning, half way on the route to Monte 
Video. At the house, into the corral of which our horses were driven 
for the purpose of changing them, I procured a slight repast of dried 
figs, after which we again mounted and travelled tolerably fresh 
until six in the morning, when we were again obliged to change, 
having proceeded about one hundred English miles. Our horses 
now began to lose their generous spirit, and were very much dis- 
tressed. As our progress became slower and our changes more fre- 
quent, my anxiety increased, because I was aware there were 
Spanish parties scouring the country about Monte Video, and 
stopping the passage of all provisions from the interior. To avoid 
suspicion I rode in the dress of a Peon, with the lazo coiled up and 
hung at my saddle. At eleven o'clock the heat of the day became 
oppressive, and our horses flagged exceedingly. To add to my dis- 
tress I had a violent haemorrhage from the nose, and could obtain 
no water to drink or wash with, so that, through thirst and the 
coagulation of blood, I was nearly suffocated. On arriving within 
twelve miles of Monte Video our horses were nearly worn out; but 
no rest could be allowed for either them or the men. At noon we 
reached an English picqueb-guard on the outposts ; after the usual 
questions I was conducted by a soldier to the officer, to whom 
having explained some particulars, I rode to General Lumley's tent, 
and afterwards into the town. 

No language can describe my emotions on beholding an English 
flag on that tower in which I had been so often confined, and on 
seeing English soldiers in possession of a place where I had ex- 
perienced so much injustice and oppression. The joy I felt made 
me forget my fatigue and the dangers I had passed through. I rode 
up to my friend's house ; all was barricadoed, and I feared the worst 
might have happened ; but on advancing to the window I observed 

F 



( 34 ) 



one of the ladies, who instantly recognized me. All the family 
welcomed me most cordially, and invited me to dinner, after which 
I went, in my Peon's disguise, to visit some of my friends. On taking 
possession of Mr. Martinez's house, I found my chests, &c. undis- 
turbed, and in the same condition as when I left them on going 
into the country. 



( 35 ) 



CHAP. III. 

Expedition against Buenos Ayres. — Causes of its Failure. — Account 
of the Population of the Country, and of the various Classes which 
compose it. 

TX7HEN the expedition against Buenos Ayres was ready to sail, 
I obtained General Whitelocke's permission to go with the 
army under the hope of recovering the property I had in that city, 
and offered my service to the commissary-general, whom I accom- 
panied. On our arrival at the place of disembarkation I was sur- 
prized to learn that the army was totally destitute of guides, and 
almost equally so of Peons, whose assistance was highly desirable 
in catching and driving cattle for the subsistence of the troops. The 
commander in chief, whom I met with on the beach, expressed great 
chagrin at the false information he had received on this and other 
particulars. He had been led to expect a landing-place where the 
men would not wet their shoes; — here they were up to the breasts in 
water : he had been told that guides would offer themselves in whole 
troops on this side the river; — not one was to be seen. Early on 
the morning after we had landed, I was requested by an officer to 
assist in obtaining guides, and the difficulty we had in the search 
fully exposed the oversight which had been committed in neglecting 
to secure a number at Monte Video. Some useful persons there 
had offered themselves, and only required to be ostensibly pressed 
into the service in order to avoid the ignominy which might have 
awaited them had they openly volunteered. After much trouble an 
aged negro was found, who was compelled to guide the army on 
its way to Buenos Ayres. The difficulties that occurred on the 
march in passing swamps, fording rivers, &c. have been already 

f 2 



( 36 ) 



laid before the public, in the report of General White! ocke's trial, 
and I believe the evidence recorded in that statement will bear me 
out in saying, that these difficulties were in great part attributable to 
the glaring omission above-stated. Previous to our advance to Quil- 
mes, a place four leagues distant from Buenos Ayres, the com- 
missary-general requested me to undertake the management of the 
few Peons we had, in order to procure provisions for the troops. In 
this service I found myself of some use, though no exertion could 
repair the neglect which was observable in a department so essential 
to the army. The enemy drove the cattle away wherever they 
could, and our Peons found the duty extremely harrassing and pe- 
rilous, for they were frequently chased by the Spaniards and driven 
within our marching columns. A small detachment of riflemen was 
sent out to cover their excursions, and the service was afterwards 
more effectually performed. On our arrival at Quilmes, after many 
disagreeable encounters, the soldiers were excessively fatigued ; up- 
wards of two hundred of them could march no farther. The centre 
division, commanded by General Whitelocke, quitted this place 
without any person conversant with the country to act as guide, 
and on halting, after a march of four or five hours, they found that, 
instead of having followed the route of the advanced division, under 
General Crawfurd, they had taken a circuit to the left, and were 
almost as far from Buenos Ayres as when they set out. I ac- 
cidentally met the General while I was riding about giving directions 
to the Peons ; and on speaking with him he expressed great irrita- 
tion and disappointment at the situation in which he found himself. 
The next morning the division advanced, and crossing the Ria- 
chuelo, joined that of General Crawfurd, about four in the after- 
noon, when we were informed of the skirmish that had taken place, 
and of the cannon that had fallen into our hands. 

It is by no means improbable that the fate of the expedition 
was decided by the delay which took place in the junction of the 
centre with the advanced division ; for, had they joined the day 



( 37 ) 



before, they would most probably have entered the town imme- 
diately, while part of the enemy's forces were out of it, and, unpre- 
pared. This delay, though short, gave the latter time to entrench and 
fortify their streets, and to post themselves in the most advantageous 
stations. 

During the few days we were in possession of the suburbs 
I was requested to take charge of the Pulperias (houses where liquor 
is sold), in order to prevent the soldiers from getting intoxicated. 
I had a serjeant and a small party of soldiers under my directions, 
and placed sentinels where I thought proper. While engaged in 
this service I had it in my power to render assistance to many 
families who had fled hither from the town for refuge. Many of the 
houses I found rilled with females, almost frightened to death ; to 
these I gave such protection as my influence over the soldiery enabled 
me to offer, and supplied them with provisions by means of the Peons. 

It was afterwards determined to enter the town ; the misfortunes 
attending that rash attempt are too notorious to need repetition here. 
A capitulation was signed by our chiefs, and an armistice took 
place during the fulfilment of the terms. In fact the situation of 
our army was so critical, that they were obliged to accede to the con- 
ditions dictated by the enemy , or perhaps eventually to become priso- 
ners at discretion. The restoration of Monte Video was the stipu- 
lation most to be regretted, for every principle of good policy 
required us to keep that town to the last extremity, nay some of the 
best-informed among the Spaniards were of opinion, that our army 
should have been contented with the possession of the north side of 
the Plata, without venturing any farther, because we should thus 
have commanded the trade of the interior, and Buenos Ayres would 
in the end have found it necessary to come to terms of accommoda- 
tion highly to our advantage*. 



* It is with great regret that I mention the ill-requital which the Peons met with from 
our army. They had been promised great rewards for their activity in driving cattle and 
securing provisions during the march, and for their great services as messengers. After the 



( 38 ) 



After the army had reimbarked for Monte Video, I remained a 
few days to forward some business for the commissary, and to attend 
to my own. It was gratifying to me to find that the services I had 
an opportunity of rendering to those families that had taken refuge 
in the suburbs during the siege were not forgotten ; they all strove 
which should be foremost in testifying their acknowledgments by 
every polite attention which it was in their power to shew me. 

My short stay at Buenos Ayres did not afford me time to make 
any geological researches ; indeed the country behind it, being a vast 
plain, without any traces of rock, did not offer much scope for such 
an undertaking. With the exception of a part of the bank near the 
mole, which is of granite, I scarcely found an indurated substance 
during the whole route. Judging from the shells and other marine 
productions which are occasionally found in the Pampas, I should 
conclude that those extensive level districts have formed, at some 
period, the bottom of the river, and that they have been left dry 
by the progressive precipitation of matter and the deepening of the 
Rio de la Plata in its present channel through a long course of ages. 
A circumstance which seems to support this conjecture is, that the 
land continually gains upon the river, and that at those times, when 
the wind blows from the Pampas, a considerable extent of the bank 
on the side of Buenos Ayres is left dry. 



capitulation was signed, as they were accompanying a waggon full of our wounded from the 
corrals of Miserere to the Retiro, a place assigned for our re-embarkation, they were 
met and recognized, in their disguise, by a party of Spaniards, who, suffering the waggon 
to pass, carried these unfortunate men to prison. Hearing of this I made repeated applica- 
tions to the Commissary-general to induce him to procure their liberation ; he assured me that 
he had represented the matter to the Commander-in-chief, who had promised to attend 
to it. The men, however, never were liberated ; some were executed, and others con- 
demned to hard labour. Thus not only were they disappointed of their reward, but 
abandoned in their hour of need by the men on whose good faith they had relied, and 
whose cause they had zealously served. The Commander-in-chief might have obtained then- 
discharge by making a spirited remonstrance, but he omitted to do so, and was very ge- 
nerally accused for this unfeeling neglect; the Spaniards themselves, spoke with indignation 
of our inhumanity in leaving these poor men to be punished as traitors. 



( 39 ) 



The population of Buenos Ayres and its immediate suburbs, ex- i 
elusive of the country in its vicinity, has been ascertained to 
amount to upwards of sixty thousand souls. The proportion of 
females to males is said to be as four to one, but if we take into con- 
sideration that many men are almost daily arriving from Europe, as 
well as from the South American provinces, and that under the old 
government neither the militia nor the marine was recruited from the 
mass of the population, we shall find reason to conclude that the 
proportion of the sexes is not so unequal. In the interior the ex- 
cess of males is very great, for as the lands are granted in large 
tracts only, and but poorly cultivated, there is no encouragement for 
the labouring classes to marry and settle upon them. The poor are 
compelled to remain single from the very bare resources on which 
they depend for subsistence, and are accustomed to consider the 
married state as fraught with heavy burthens and inevitable misfor- 
tunes. It is not uncommon to find estates larger than an English 
county with hardly more than a hundred labourers upon them, who 
subsist upon the sale of a little corn, which each is permitted to 
grow for himself, but only to such an extent as a single man can 
plough. 

The various races which compose the population are as follow ; 

ii Legitimate Spaniards or Europeans. In Buenos Ayres there 
are about three thousand ; in the interior the number is very trifling, 
except in Potosi, which, being a mining country, contains many. 

2. Creoles ; legitimate descendants from Spaniards or Europeans. 

3. Mestizos, the offspring of European and Indian parents. 

4. Indians, almost all of whom have some mixture of Spanish 
blood. 

5. Brown mixtures of Africans and Europeans. 

6. Mulattos of various degrees. 

All these races intermix without restraint, so that it is difficult to 
define the minor gradations or to assign limits to the ever-multiplying 
varieties. Few families are entirely exempt from characteristics of 

9 



( 40 ) 



Indian origin, physical as well as moral. It is well known that in 
the Spanish colonies little regard is now paid to purity of blood ; 
the various regulations for preserving the races distinct have gradu- 
ally become obsolete. This may be regarded as a momentary evil ; 
but may it not be conducive in the long-run to the good of society, 
by concentrating the interests of the various classes, which in re- 
maining separate might one day endanger the stability of the govern- 
ment, as has been the case in the French colony of St. Domingo ? 

In describing the orders of society in Buenos Ayres, it is neces- 
sary to premise that I mean to class them, not by degrees of birth, 
rank, or profession, but by the relative estimation in which they 
stand in point of property or public usefulness. 

According to this scale, the first which comes under considera- 
tion is the commercial class. Every person belonging to it, from 
the huckster at the corner of the street, to the opulent trader in his 
warehouse, is dignified by the appellation of merchant, yet few indivi- 
duals among them can lay just claim to that title, as they are wanting 
in that practical knowledge so essential in commercial dealings. They 
are averse to all speculation and enterprise ; the common routine of 
their business is to send orders to Spain for the articles they need, and 
to sell by retail at an exorbitant profit ; beyond this they have 
hardly a single idea, and it has been said that their great reason for 
opposing a free trade with foreign nations is a consciousness of their 
own mercantile inexperience. The more considerable houses are 
almost all branches of some European establishment; few of the 
Creoles have any regular trade. Those among them however who 
engage in it are much more liberal in their transactions than the old 
Spaniards, and are observed to make less rapid fortunes, for their 
manly and independent character makes them spurn a miserable 
economy, and disdain to assume that church-going hypocrisy which 
must be practised twice or thrice a-day by those who would enrich 
themselves through the patronage of the opulent families. Among the 
inferior tradesmen, those who gain most are the pulperos, the ware- 



( 41 ) 



housemen, and the shop-keepers. The pulperos retail wine, 
brandy, candles, sausages, salt, bread, spices, wood, grease, brim- 
stone, &c. Their shops are generally lounging-places for the idle and 
dissipated of the community. In Buenos Ayres there are about 
seven hundred of them, each more or less in the interest of some 
richer individual. The warehousemen sell earthen and glass ware, 
drugs, various articles of consumption, and some goods of home- 
manufacture, wholesale and retail. The shop-keepers amount to 
nearly six hundred in number ; they sell woollen cloths, silks, cotton 
goods of all sorts, hats, and various other articles of wearing ap- 
parel. Many of them make considerable fortunes, those especially 
who trade to Lima, Peru, Chili, or Paraguay, by means of young 
men whom they send as agents or factors. There is another descrip- 
tion of merchants, if such they may be called, who keep in the 
back-ground and enrich themselves by monopolizing victuals, and 
by forestalling the grain brought to market from the interior, much 
to the injury of the agricultural interest. 

The second class of inhabitants consists of the proprietors of 
estates and houses. They are in general Creoles, for few Europeans 
employ their funds in building, or in the purchase of land, until 
they have realised a fortune to live upon, which commonly takes 
place when they are far advanced in life, so that their establish- 
ments pass immediately into the hands of their successors. The 
simple landholders derive so little revenue from their possessions, 
that they are generally in debt to their tradesmen ; their gains are 
but too commonly engrossed by the monopolists, and having no 
magistrate to represent them, they find themselves destitute of ef- 
fectual resources against wrong and extortion. So defective and ill- 
regulated are the concerns of agriculture in this country, that the 
proprietor of an estate really worth 20,000 dollars can scarcely 
subsist upon it. 

Under the class of landed proprietors I may reckon the cultiva- 
tors, here called quinteros or chacareros, who grow wheat, maize, 

a 



( 42 ) 



and other grain. These men are so depressed and impoverished 
that, notwithstanding the importance of their calling, and the pub- 
lic usefulness of their labours, they are ranked among the people of 
least consequence in society. 

The third class is composed of handicraftsmen, such as masons, 
carpenters, tailors, and shoe-makers, who, although they work 
hard and receive great wages, seldom realise property. The 
journeymen are usually people of colour ; the masters for the 
most part Genoese, and universally foreigners, for the Spaniards 
despise these trades, and cannot stoop to work along with negroes 
or mulattos. Many of the lower orders derive subsistence from 
these and other employments of a similar nature ; here are lime- 
burners, wood-cutters, tanners, curriers, &c. The free porters 
constitute a numerous body of men ; they ply about the streets 
to load and unload carts, and carry burdens, but they are so 
idle and dissolute, that no man can depend on their services for 
a week together ; when they have a little money, they drink and 
gamble, and when pennyless, they sometimes betake themselves 
to pilfering. These habits have long rendered them a public 
nuisance, but no corrective measures have hitherto been taken, 
nor does there appear, on the part of the higher orders, any dispo- 
sition to reform them. 

Persons employed in public offices may be comprehended un* 
der the fourth class, The best situations under Government are 
held by native Spaniards ; those of less emolument by Creoles ; 
the former are regarded as mere sinecures, and the persons en- 
joying them are considered as in no way serviceable to the commu- 
nity except by spending their large salaries within it. 

The fifth class is the militia or soldiery. Previous to the 
invasion of the English, the officers were not much noted for 
military science, or for that ardour which leads to the acqui- 
sition of it ; their chief ambition was to obtain commands in towns 
and villages, especially those on the Portuguese frontier, where they 



( 43 ) 



might enrich themselves by smuggling. The privates were ill-dis- 
ciplined, badly dressed, and badly paid. The effective force which 
the crown of Spain maintained in these possessions was one 
regiment of the line, which was to consist of 1200 men, but was 
reduced to less than half ; one regiment of dragoons amounting to 
600, two of cavalry called blandengues, 600 each, and one or two 
companies of artillery. With the exception of the blandengues, all 
the troops were originally sent from the Peninsula, but not having 
for the last twenty years been recruited from thence, their ranks 
were gradually filled by natives. By eminence they were called 
veterans, but they have been of late disbanded, and their officers 
have passed to the command of the new corps which were formed 
on the English invasion. The force of these corps may be estimated 
at nine thousand men. 

The sixth class is the clergy, in number about a thousand. The 
seculars are distinguished by their learning, honour, and probity from 
the friars, who are in general so grossly ignorant and superstitious, 
that they render no real service to the public in any way, but 
rather tend to disturb the minds of the honest and well-dis- 
posed. 

Every observation I was able to make gave me a favourable 
idea of the general character of the people : they are tractable, 
prudent, and generous ; and doubtless, had they been under a 
milder and more beneficent government than that of the Spaniards, 
they might have become a model to other colonies ; but it is la- 
mentable to add, that in points of morality they cannot be consi- 
dered as much superior to the other inhabitants of America. This 
is attributable to the want of a proper system of education for 
youth, to the pernicious example afforded by the vices of the 
Europeans, and, in a word, to the prevalence of an intolerant system, 
which, by aiming to make men what they cannot be, cause them to 
become what they ought not to be. The excessive rigour exer- 
cised by the ministers of worship as well as by the government, for 

g 2 



( 44 ) 



the suppression of immorality, defeats its own end ; it is like the 
unskilful practice of a physician, which, directed solely against the 
external symptoms, aggravates instead of removing the disease. 
Thus, while open profligacy is discountenanced in Buenos Ayres, 
libertinism of a more dangerous kind is connived at, if not tole- 
rated ; the peace of the most respectable private families is liable 
to be destroyed by votaries of seduction, who respect neither the 
purity of female virtue, nor the sacred rights of matrimony. This 
evil pervades all classes of society, and is the source of domestic 
disputes, which often lead to serious consequences. 

In thus attempting to describe the state of Buenos Ayres as I 
found it m the year 1807, I have purposely avoided all discussions 
of a political nature, and have declined entering into a detail of 
the events which led to the present struggles of the people for 
independence. Circumstanced as I then was, I had no means of 
procuring correct and impartial information on the subject, but 
since my return I have been favoured with a communication, con- 
taining a brief history of the Revolution, by a gentleman whose 
official situation at Buenos Ayres afforded him the amplest oppor- 
tunities of observing its rise and progress. This communication in- 
terested me so much that I solicited and obtained permission to 
annex it to this work in a detached form, and I submit it to the 
public under the impression that its authentic character, and the 
spirit of moderation which it breathes, will ensure to it a candid 
and favourable reception*. 



* See Appendix A. 



( 45 ) 



CHAP. IV. 

Voyage to St. Catherines. — Description of that Island, and of the 
Coast in its Vicinity. — Arrival at Santos, and Journey thence 
to St. Paul's. 

(\N my return to Monte Video, I lost no time in putting in exe- 
cution my purposed voyage to Rio de Janeiro ; and as advices 
had arrived, stating that considerable difficulty might attend the 
entrance of an English ship into that port, I bottomried a Por- 
tugueze vessel, called the Vencedor, and was joined by a party of 
gentlemen whose business required them to visit the capital of 
Brazil. 

In the beginning of September 1807, we had just embarked our 
stock for this voyage, when an order for the immediate evacuation 
of Monte Video by our troops was unexpectedly issued. As it had 
been generally believed that a prolongation of the time for giving 
up the place had been agreed on, the greatest hurry and confusion 
prevailed in embarking the troops and stores, as well as the baggage 
of individuals. About mid-day the whole was on board ; a signal- 
gun was then fired for the Spanish troops to enter, and about three 
in the afternoon we had the mortification to behold their flag 
hoisted on the ramparts of this important military post and commer- 
cial depot, which the British forces had, a short period before, so 
bravely and so dearly won. 

Having still some purchases to make, I returned on shore, with 
two of my friends, about four o'clock, but we had soon reason to 
repent of our temerity, for on passing the mole we were noticed as 
enemies and threatened severely, so that we found it necessary to 
pass into the more private streets in order to avoid the malignant 



( 46 ) 



and hostile taunts of those very men who had of late expressed 
themselves our friends and well-wishers. Desirous of expediting 
our several affairs as much as possible, we separated, and I was not 
able to rejoin my companions until eight in the evening. I found 
them in great anxiety for my safety ; the Spaniards had fired a feu- 
de-joie from the citadel and fort St. Joseph, and were now preparing 
for bonfires * and illuminations, and my friends, though they did 
their utmost to avoid the riotous crowds that paraded the town, had 
several narrow escapes from being plundered and stripped by the 
soldiery. We all got safely on board by ten o'clock, congratulating 
each other on having happily avoided the dangers to which our rash 
confidence in the amicable disposition of the inhabitants had ex- 
posed us. 

On the 11th of September we sailed from the Rio de la Plata ; the 
vessels bound for the Cape of Good Hope were then nearly out of 
sight, and as we beheld them we felt a melancholy but proud de- 
light in reflecting that, after such grievous and unexpected reverses, 
our brave countrymen were once more within their wide undisputed 
empire, the ocean. After a voyage, in which nothing worth relation 
occurred, we made the island of St. Catherine's on the 29th, at sun- 
rise, and were delighted with a grand and pictureque view of its 
conical rocks rising abruptly from the sea, embellished with the 
lofty mountains of Brazil, covered with wood in the back-ground. 
This sublime scenery interested us the more from the contrast it 
formed with the extensive and woodless plains of Buenos Ayres. 
This island is situated in 27 and 29° south latitude, and is separated 
from the continent by a strait, in some places not half a league wide. 



* One mode which they adopted for displaying their triumph over their late conquerors 
was singular enough ; they collected all the sign boards belonging to the English warehouses 
and shops, and made a bonfire of them. A great quantity of these boards were from the 
pulperias, the masters of which had been obliged to have on them the following inscription, 
painted in large characters, " Licensed to sell liquor." 

9 



( 47 ) 



Entering the port of St. Catherine's by the north, we passed 
several islands, on one of which, westward of the entrance, stood 
the respectable fort of Santa Cruz. After running a few miles in 
shoal water, we sailed into a narrow passage guarded by two forts, 
which forms the harbour. From the anchorage, and more particu- 
larly from the landing-place, which is at the bottom of a verdant slope 
of about five hundred yards, the town has a most beautiful appear- 
ance, and the perspective is nobly crowned by its fine cathedral. 
The green is interspersed with orange-trees, and forms an agreeable 
parade. Immediately on entering the town, we discerned in its 
general appearance, and in the manners of its inhabitants, a striking 
superiority over those which we had of late visited. These houses 
are well built, have two or three stories, with boarded floors, and 
are provided with neat gardens, well stocked with excellent vege- 
tables and flowers. The town consists of several streets, and may 
contain from five thousand to six thousand inhabitants. It is a free 
port. The produce of the island consists in rice, maize, mandioca, 
coffee of excellent quality, oranges, perhaps the finest in the world, 
and a variety of other fruits. Sugar and indigo are likewise pro- 
duced, but in small quantities. A profusion of the finest flowers 
indicates the genial nature of its climate ; the rose and the jessamin 
are in bloom all the year round. 

The surface of the island is varied with mountains, plains, and in 
some places swamps ; here is found a stratum of excellent red clay, 
which is manufactured into jars, culinary vessels, large water-pots, 
&c. which are exported in considerable quantities to the Plata and 
to Rio de Janeiro. The lands capable of cultivation are under con- 
siderable improvement; a great extent of them was formerly covered 
with large trees, but as great quantities have of late years been cut 
down and used for ship-building, good timber may now be con- 
sidered scarce. They grow flax here of a very fair quality, of which 
the fishermen make their lines, nets, and cordage. The sea here- 
abouts produces an abundant variety of excellent fish, and some 



( 48 ) 



fine prawns; so large is the supply to the market, that a quantity 
of fish, sufficient to dine a dozen persons, may be had for a shilling. 
Meat is much the same in quality as at Monte Video, being rather 
hard and lean ; its general price is about three halfpence per pound. 
Pigs, turkies, ducks, poultry, and eggs, as well as fine vegetables 
and excellent potatoes, are plentiful and cheap. 

The trade of this place is inconsiderable, as the produce does not 
much exceed the consumption of the inhabitants, who are in ge- 
neral far from rich. It affords an agreeable retirement to merchants 
who have discontinued business, masters of ships who have left off 
going to sea, and other persons, who, having secured an inde- 
pendence, seek only leisure to enjoy it. Few places are better 
calculated for such a purpose than this ; it is enlivened by the nu- 
merous coasting-vessels from Bahia, Pernambuco, and other ports, 
bound for the Plata, which frequently touch here ; and it is amply 
provided with artisans of all descriptions, such as tailors, shoe- 
makers, tin-workers, joiners, and smiths. The inhabitants in general 
are very civil and courteous to strangers ; the ladies are handsome 
and very lively, their chief employment is making of lace, in which 
they display great ingenuity and taste. 

The mountains of the interior, and the rocks on the coast, are of 
primitive granite. Close to the fort, on the left hand of the entrance 
to the harbour, is a vein of griinstein in various states of decompo- 
sition, which ultimately migrates into clay of a superior quality to 
that generally found in the valleys. The soil in the interior, being ra- 
ther humid, is surprisingly fertile. It consists principally of a rich 
vegetable decomposition, on which shrubs and plants grow in great 
luxuriance. Myrtles appear in all parts, and a most beautiful va- 
riety of the passion-flower is found in equal abundance. Here is 
also a profusion of roses, pinks, rosemary, &c. 

The animals are chiefly opossums, monkeys, and armadillas ; 
there are various serpents, among which is the beautiful corral snake. 
Of birds, there are cranes, hawks, parrots, of various species, 



( 49 ) 



humming birds and toucans, the latter of every variety in great 
numbers. 

The climate is serene and wholesome, its solstitial heats beino- 

o 

moderated constantly by fine breezes from the south-west and north- 
east, which are the winds that generally blow here ; the latter prevails 
from September to March, and the former from April to August, so 
that a voyage to the north, during one half of the year is slow and 
tedious. 

The island is divided into four parishes : 1st, Nossa Senhora de 
Dereito ; 2d, St. Antonio ; 3d, Laguno ; and 4th, Riberon. The 
divisions of the opposite part of the continent are likewise under the 
jurisdiction of the governor of St. Catherine's, who is subject, in cer- 
tain cases, to the captaincy of St. Paul's, and in others to the Go- 
vernment of Rio de Janeiro. These divisions, are 1st, St. Jose ; 
2d, St. Miguel ; and 3d, Nossa Senhora de Rosario ; the entire po- 
pulation of the island and its dependencies amounts to about 
30,000 souls. 

Of the fortresses which defend this island the most considerable 
is Santa Cruz before-mentioned ; there are four others, Porto Groed, 
Ratones, Estreito, and Concepcao. Off the former there is safe 
anchorage for a fleet of men of war, and the harbour which it pro- 
tects may be entered by ships of 300 tons, if not of a heavy draught 
of water. Ships passing the channel are required to send a boat on 
shore at Santa Cruz before they proceed. 

To the west of the island, on the opposite coast, is an almost in- 
accessible barrier of lofty mountains, thickly covered with trees and 
underwood. At a small port in the vicinity, called Piripi, which 
has a very pretty river, an immense quantity of fish is caught, dried, 
and exported. They are extremely fat, and very soon become rancid. 

On the continent, opposite the town of St. Catherine's, stands the 
pleasant village of St. Jose, the inhabitants of which are principally 
occupied in sawing timber into planks, making bricks, and growing 
rice. The net gains of a poor family here are incredibly small, but 

H 



( 50 ) 

the necessaries of life are cheap, and they have few incentives to 
curtail their present enjoyments for the sake of improving their fu- 
ture fortunes. Near this village is a lovely vale called Picada, 
thickly studded with white cottages, embosomed in orange-groves 
and plantations of coffee. The gently-sloping hills which enclose 
this spot, give a picturesque effect to the bold rugged scenery be- 
yond them. This valley, and others contiguous to it, form the ex- 
tremities of the territory habitable by the Portugueze, for on the 
land to the westward, though at considerable distance, dwell the 
Anthropophagi, here called Boogres. These savages live entirely 
in the woods, in wretched sheds made of palm-branches, inter- 
woven with bananas. Their occupation is chiefly hunting with 
bows and arrows, but they frequently employ these weapons in hos- 
tilities against their neighbours. A party of them will sometimes 
way-lay a Portugueze, whose residence is solitary ; they have 
even been known to attack and destroy whole families. No regard 
to humanity seems indeed to be paid by either party in their en- 
counters ; they are mutually bent on a war of extermination. 

There is much low swampy land in the island, over which cause- 
ways, supported by piles, are made to a considerable extent. These 
lands, on account of their humidity, are very favourable to the growth 
of rice. The palm-trees, seen at intervals in every direction, have a 
very pleasing effect. 

Our stay at St. Catherine's was prolonged by some unforeseen 
circumstances, and we had time to take various excursions into the 
interior of the island and to the adjacent continent. On one of 
these occasions I happened to be absent, but the adventures which 
attended it being rather amusing, I am tempted to relate them in 
the words of one of my friends who formed the party. " Having 
hired horses and negroes we set out early in the morning for the 
river Tavarinha. The road for three leagues lay through thick woods, 
along which we passed without any material accident, and arrived 
at the end of our journey about two in the afternoon. We dined 

9 



( 51 ) 

with Captain Leones, who entertained us very hospitably, and would 
have persuaded us to prolong our visit, but we determined to return 
that evening over the mountains. We travelled for a league through 
a level well-cultivated country, clothed with orange-groves and coffee- 
plantations, and tolerably populous. At sunset we arrived at the 
foot of the mountains, and began to ascend a steep and dangerous 
road, in the intricacies of which we were soon bewildered, and had 
great difficulty to regain the most beaten path, which led home- 
wards. Night suddenly overtook us, and we had still three hours 
journey over the mountains, without guide or attendant, along a 
perfectly alpine road, winding on the edge of horrible precipices. 
In this part of the journey two of us, having advanced a little, the 
rest of the party were suddenly alarmed by a dreadful shriek which 
excited great apprehension lest some -one should have been precipi- 
tated down the gulph, but we were agreeably undeceived soon after 
by the whole of the party joining us. We now heard a noise like 
hammers, which proceeded from persons beating cotton, and in a 
little time arrived at a house where, on enquiry, we were informed 
that the town was ten miles distant. We were proceeding, when a 
voice cried out in English, " but will not you stop and have some 
grog ?" It may easily be imagined that to be thus suddenly hailed 
with one of the most familiar phrases of our native English, while 
benighted in a strange land, operated like an electric shock upon us ; 
we immediately alighted at the house whence the voice seemed to 
proceed, and found a Mr.Nunney, the English interpreter, who fur- 
nished us with a guide ; we now continued our way with greater con- 
fidence, and reached the town about midnight. This Mr. Nunney, 
as we afterwards learnt, receives a dollar per diem during the stay 
of every English or American ship that touches at this port, whether 
his services are wanted or not, and by these means, with the profits 
of the sales of provisions which he makes to such ships, he has ac- 
quired a little fortune and a pretty estate. His profits, indeed, are 

h 2 



( 52 ) 



Exorbitant, for he charges the articles 100 per cent, higher than they 
can be procured at from any other dealer in the place/' 

While at the town of St. Catherine's, we visited some of the gar- 
dens with which its vicinity is embellished. They are laid out with 
great taste, particularly one belonging to the vicar, another in the 
estate of the late excel 7 ant and able General Soares de Coimbra, 
and a third the property of Colonel Gama. At Barragros, near the 
village of St. Jose, we visited a gentleman of the name of Caldwin, 
who collects and preserves insects. He showed us his grounds, 
which occupy a space of eighty-five fathoms along the beach, and 
extend a mile inland, containing orangeries, coffee, rice, and man- 
dioca, in a fine state of culture. These well-watered plantations, 
together with a neat house and garden, he offered to sell for a thou- 
sand crusados (about 1251. sterling). 

This was not the only instance we remarked of the low value of 
landed property here. About two miles from the town of St. Ca- 
therine's, a neat house, a small orangery and ground clear of brush 
wood, capable of forming a pretty plantation, was offered at ]00 
dollars. An excellent house, in one of the best situations in the envi- 
rons of the town, with a garden of about two acres well and tastefully 
planted, was offered to be sold for 4001. sterling. The building of 
the house must alone have cost 5001. and it was in perfect condition. 
In short, money appeared so valuable, that a large landed estate 
might be purchased for a mere trifle. 

Our excursions to the main land were not confined to the districts 
immediately within the jurisdiction of St. Catherine's. Proceeding 
northward from St. Jose we entered some fine bays, the shores of 
which were studded with houses pleasantly situated amid bananerias, 
orangeries, and plantations of rice, coffee, and mandioca. After 
having passed several well-peopled parishes, we arrived at Armasao, 
a village at the extremity of a bay about nine leagues distant from 
St. Jose, and four leagues north of Santa Cruz. This village is a 



( 53 ) 



fishing station for whales, which were formerly very numerous on 
this coast, and in the bays that indent it. The fishery is farmed by 
government to a company under the superintendance of a Captain 
Mor * and a number of inferior officers. About 150 negroes are 
employed on this station, but the number of whales now caught is 
not so great as formerly, when the average was three or four hundred 
in a season. Their conveniences for flinching or cutting up the fish 
are extensive and well-contrived. Several fine piers project from 
the shore into eighteen to twenty feet depth of water, on which are 
erected capstans, cranes, and other requisite machinery. Hither 
all the fish caught on the coast are brought. The boiling-house, 
tanks, &c. are far superior to any thing of the kind at Greenland 
dock, and indeed to all similar establishments in Europe. To give 
an idea of their magnitude, it is sufficient to say, that in one range 
there are twenty-seven very large boilers, and places for three more. 
Their tanks are vast vaults, on some of which a boat might be 
rowed with ease. We obtained a view of these great works through 
the civility of the commander of the place, Captain Iacinth 
St. George, who lives here in a princely style, and possesses a very 
considerable property, which he diffuses with great public spirit and 
liberality. All who have visited Armasao can bear witness to his 
affability and urbanity to strangers. 

We crossed this peninsula by a mountainous road of four leagues 
to the Bay of Dos Ganchos, commonly known by the name of 
Tejucos. Here land is of little or no value ; any one may take as 
much as he pleases of what is unappropriated, provided he make 
a proper application for it to the government. We passed two sugar 
plantations with conveniencies for making rum ; and observed nume- 
rous huts interspersed in the vicinity. The contrary side of this penin- 
sula forms the bay before named. The poor cottages of the people 
here present a curious picture of rural irregularity; some are built on 



* Captain Major. 



( 54 ) 



the summit of conical mounsains, the passage to which is frequently 
obstructed by clouds ; others stand on the sides of gentle acclivities ; 
but the greater number of them is situated almost in contact with 
the ocean, which often flows to their very doors. The bay is from 
two to three leagues across, and extends about the same distance 
inland ; it is well-sheltered, and affords good anchorage, and fine situ- 
ations for loading timber, with which the mountainous country 
around is thickly clothed, and large quantities of which are felled 
and embarked for Rio de Janeiro and the Plata. Canoes are 
made here, at a cheaper rate and in greater numbers than in any 
other part of Brazil. The inhabitants grow rice in considerable 
quantities, as well as some coffee and sugar, but such is their indo- 
lence and poverty that they use only hand-mills, consisting of two 
horizontal rollers, in manufacturing the latter article. 

Into this bay fall several streams formed by the mountain tor- 
rents and springs, and two tolerable rivers, the less called Infer- 
ninho, and the larger Tigreno. They both flow through low swampy 
land, subject to inundation* and overgrown with mangroves and an 
immense variety of trees. The insalubrity of this tract might be cor- 
rected by clearing away the underwood and draining the soil, but 
the arduousness of such an undertaking might deter a more active 
and skilful people than this. In the rainy season it is inundated to 
a great extent, and in summer it is infested with terrible swarms 
of mosquitos and burachala flies, which render it almost uninha- 
bitable. 

Along the beach of this bay I found the shell of the murex 
genus, which produces that beautiful cnrason dye, so valued by the 
ancients. It is here called purpura, and to my great surprise, its 
use is in some degree known to the natives, one of whom shewed 
me some cotton fringe, dyed with an extract of it, though ill-pre- 
pared. The shell is about the size of the common whelk, and con- 
tains a fish, on whose body appears a vesicle full of a pale yellow, 
viscid, purulent substance, which constitutes the dye. The mode of 



( r>5 ) 



extracting it, is to break the shell carefully with a hammer, so as 
not to crush the fish, and then let out the liquor in the vesicle with 
a lancet or other sharp instrument. I for greater convenience used 
a pen, and immediately wrote my initials, &c, on a handkerchief; 
the marks in half an hour after were of a dirty green colour, and 
on being exposed to the air a few hours longer, changed to a most 
rich crimson. The quantity produced by each animal is very small, 
but quite sufficient for such an experiment. The best time for 
making it, is when the animal is in an incipient state of putrescency. 
I have not a doubt that if a sufficient quantity of them were taken, 
and the dyeing matter, when extracted, were liquified in a small de- 
gree with gum-water, a valuable article of commerce might be pro- 
duced. At least the trial is worth making. The liquid, is a perfect 
substantive dye, and of course resists the action of alkalies. 

On the rocks, and in greater abundance on the trunks of old trees, 
I observed a variety of lichens, some of which produced tints of 
several shades of colours. The continual decomposition of vege- 
tables here adds greatly to the richness of the soil ; it is not uncom- 
mon to find trees lying on the ground with their interior substance 
entirely decomposed, and a great diversity of plants growing on 
them in high luxuriance. Among the numerous tribes of birds that 
frequent this region, the aquatic afford good eating, as do also the 
smaller parrots. The woods are filled with monkeys ; and on the 
banks of the rivers are found capivaras in considerable numbers. 

In coasting along this shore it is customary for strangers to visit 
the chief person in command at every station, whatever may be his 
degree or rank ; he, on being requested, will furnish guides, and 
afford every assistance in his power, I always experienced the 
greatest attention and civility from these gentlemen, and have reason 
to believe that they uniformly pay the same regard to all who visit 
them for permission to see the country. 

Ten leagues north of this place is the fine and capacious har- 
bour of Groupus, with its handsome town ; the anchorage is 



( 56 ) 



equally good as in that of Dos Ganchos. The inhabitants here 
pursue the same mode of living as their neighbours in Tejucos. 
They have a fine climate, and a soil which yields a hundred-fold 
for whatever is sown or planted in it, and is noted for its delicious 
fruits. The cotton of which their common clothes are made is 
grown, spun, and woven among them ; they build their own houses, 
and form their own canoes, which they are dexterous in managing, 
and prefer to boats. It may indeed be said that every man is more 
or less an artizan, but I am sorry to observe that they prefer ease 
to care and industry, and are by no means so good husbandmen as 
those of Tejuco. This bay, as far as I could observe, during my 
short visit to it, presents to the view greater diversity of hills, valleys, 
and plains than the one before-mentioned. Both are esteemed fine 
fishing-ground during the whale-season, which is from December to 
June. 

From hence to the northward is the fine harbour of San Francisco, 
in the bay of the same name. It has three entrances defended by 
forts ; that to the south is most frequented. The land here is very 
flat for several miles, and the rivers which intersect it are navigable 
for canoes as far as the base of the great chain of mountains, 
where a public road, begun at incredible labour and expence, leads 
over that almost impassable barrier. This road will soon be a work 
of national importance to Brazil, as through it the finest district in 
that country, and indeed one of the finest in the world in point of 
climate, the rich plain of Corritiva, will be connected with the ocean. 
The ridge of mountains is more than four thousand feet above the 
level of the sea, and there is a regular ascent for twenty leagues 
from their inland base, to Corritiva. On this fertile tract are fed large 
herds of cattle for the supply of Rio de Janeiro, St. Paul's, and other 
places ; here are also bred mules in great numbers. Its soil and 
air are so genial, that olives, grapes, apples, peaches, and other 
fruits grow to as rich a maturity as in Europe, though they are 
here almost in a wild state. It is divided into many parishes, but 



( 57 ) 



its population is small, compared with its extent ; a circumstance 
rather surprising, since every necessary of life is here so cheap and 
in such great plenty. Its distance from the coast and from the 
chief towns, and the hitherto bad road, may have contributed to 
deter settlers ; it is principally occupied as a breeding district, and 
supports no more inhabitants than what are barely competent to 
manage and tend the cattle, which are chiefly purchased by private 
dealers, and sometimes by commissioners from government, who 
come hither occasionally for the purpose. The road from hence 
to the city of St. Paul's, distant about 80 leagues, is tolerably 
inhabited, especially in the vicinity of Sorricaba, something more 
than half way, which is a great mart for mules and horses. Near 
this place is a well- wooded country called Gorosuava, abound- 
ing with fine limestone, where a considerable quantity of rich iron 
ore is found. How deplorable is it that the people should yet have 
to learn the application of such valuable resources ! 

The neighbourhood of Corritiva is watered by fine rivers, which 
flow into the Parana. Many of the streams produce gold, par- 
ticularly the Rio Verde ; and one called the Tibigi is rich in dia- 
monds, as the few good families in its vicinity have reason to remem- 
ber with gratitude. More to the westward it is dangerous to travel, 
since in that direction live the Anthropophagi, who were driven from 
these boundaries a few years ago. The country to the north is very 
full of wood. 

The cattle at Corritiva sell at various prices ; oxen, much fatter 
and in better condition than those of Rio de la Plata or of Rio 
Grande de St. Pedro, may be bought for about 12s. or 15s. a head. 
The horses are in general finer than those of Spanish America ; 
mules for the pack-saddle sell at about 40s., and those for riding at 
from three to six pounds. There is, however, great fluctuation in 
the prices, owing to the occasional scarcity as well as the occasional 
abundance of money. 

I 



( 58 ) 



But to return from this digression to San Francisco. The chief 
occupations of the inhabitants are the cutting of timber, and other 
labours connected with ship-building. Vessels of large dimensions, 
and a number of small craft for coasters, have been built here by 
merchants of Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, and Pernambuco. When this 
trade is brisk, there is a great demand for the various classes of arti- 
sans whom it requires, and many negroes are employed. The wood 
used is so strong, and holds the iron so firmly, that ships built of it 
endure many years, and are in greater esteem with the Portugueze 
and Spaniards than those built in Europe. On this account, the 
harbour of San Francisco is likely to become of considerable value 
to Brazil ; and as it is connected with Corritiva, the cattle of which 
have been found superior to Rio Grande, there is every probability 
that at no distant period the Portugueze navy will be here supplied 
with salt provisions. This must, however, depend on the completion 
of the great road over the mountains, to which the present adminis- 
tration have laudably directed their attention, with a degree of zeal 
commensurate to the importance of the work in a national point 
of view. 

I must not omit noticing another production in this district, which 
will rise in utility and value as the port of St. Francisco improves. 
Toward the north there are woods of fine large pines, exceedingly 
hard, tough, and full of resin. They constitute a singular variety of 
the genus Pinus; the boughs branch off from the upper part of the tree 
only, and have tussocks of leaves at each extremity. A tree eighty 
feet high, for instance, will appear without branches to the height of 
about fifty-five feet, the branches there extend horizontally in every 
direction, with leaves at their extremities, the lowest and largest to 
a distance of fourteen or fifteen feet from the stem, and the higher 
ones gradually diminishing in length towards the top, which ends 
in a tuft of leaves as a crown for the whole. These trees are very 
picturesque, and indeed beautiful ; they grow to a sufficient size to 



( 59 ) 



serve as masts for ships of two or three hundred tons ; I was told 
there were much larger ones to be found. 

Resuming our voyage, we left San Francisco, and, passing the port 
of Cananea, arrived near the entrance of the harbour of Santos. 
The coast along which we sailed is low and flat, and on its verge 
are some poor fishing-huts, which rather add to the dreariness of its 
appearance. It is covered with lofty trees, which also fringe the 
mountainous scenery beyond it. Several rivers occur, of little note 
in geography, but highly advantageous to the settlers, as they pass 
the very doors of the dwellings, and afford easy means for the trans- 
port of produce from the interior. On nearing Santos, we passed 
several bold rocks, called the Alcatrases, and a ledge or reef on 
which the sea broke furiously. The main land is ver}' elevated and 
mountainous, so much so that the low grounds which extend from 
its base are scarcely perceptible from the heights next beyond them. 

The harbour of Santos has a safe entrance, and is very secure ; it 
is a strait, having the island of St.Vincent to the left, for the extent 
of half a mile, when it takes a different direction. Here is situated the 
port, which has good anchorage, with regular soundings towards the 
shore, which shoals gradually. The currents and eddies cause some in- 
convenience, and the high land occasions much variation in the winds, 
which perplexes mariners on their entrance into the narrows, but as 
the water is not deep, and the current far from strong, a ship is safe 
the moment her anchor is let go, and by means of a boat and 
kedge she may be placed in any situation the pilot chooses. The 
part called the narrows is defended by two forts, on passing which 
there is a kind of lagoon of three or four leagues in length, almost 
full of mangroves, terminated by the town of Santos, one of the 
oldest European settlements in Brazil. In common with St. Paul's, 
it owes its origin to the first shipwreck on the island of St. Vincent. 
The river or lagoon has three or four fathoms water and a muddy 
bottom. Santos is a place of considerable trade, being the store- 
house of the great captaincy of St. Paul's, and the resort of many 

i 2 



( 60 ) 



vessels trading to the Rio de la Plata. It is tolerably well built, and 
its population, consisting chiefly of merchants, shop-keepers, and 
artificers, amounts to six or seven thousand souls. The situation is 
by no means healthy, as the country around it is low, woody, and 
frequently deluged with rain, by reason of the high mountains in 
its vicinity, which impede the passage of the clouds. Several rivu- 
lets flowing from the foot of these mountains intersect the land in 
various directions, and unite in one great river a little above the town 
of Santos. The rice of this district, which is grown in great quanti- 
ties, is considered the best in Brazil, and the bananas are equally 
noted. 

From this port the Spanish territories, as well as Rio Grande, re- 
ceive a great proportion of their sugar, cofTee, rum, rice, mandioca, 
indigo, &c. ; in return they bring hides and tallow, which are gene- 
rally exported hence to Europe. The Portugueze send much of 
their produce to the Spanish colonies, and are generally ill paid, but 
the shortness of the voyage, and the want of other markets, tempt 
many young men to speculate, notwithstanding the heavy duties 
and the numberless petty obstacles with which their neighbours have 
impeded and encumbered this commerce. A Spaniard in his own 
country rarely allows even a shadow of justice to a Portugueze ; he 
uses a thousand artifices for procrastinating the decision of a cause at 
issue between them, till the latter, when his patience is completely ex- 
hausted, finds that he is likely to derive nothing from the contest 
but immense piles of law-papers, frequently written on the most 
trivial points in litigation, and paid for at an exorbitant price. If 
he persevere after all this disappointment, it generally happens that 
another alcalde or judge is appointed, and then the business is 
laid on the shelf. The injured Portugueze, after so much waste of 
time and money, is threatened with worse consequences, and fre- 
quently is obliged to leave the country in ruin and disgust. 

As Santos is the embarking place of St. Paul's, its intercourse with 
that town is very considerable. In the course of a day several 



( 61 ) 



hundred mules frequently arrive, loaded with the produce of the 
country, and return with salt, iron, copper, earthen wares, and 
European manufactures. For the traffic of its immediate vicinity, 
it has the convenience of water-carriage, its river being navigable 
about twenty miles, up to Cuberton, where an officer with a guard 
of soldiers is stationed to receive the King's duties for the repair of 
the roads and other public purposes. 

The governor of Santos being subject, in all cases, to the governor 
of St. Paul's, we applied to him for permission to go thither, which 
was immediately granted. It was now eight in the evening, and 
we were without an asylum for the night. I had several letters of 
recommendation, not one of which procured us any civility, and 
we found that the inhabitants were far from being courteous to 
strangers. We were willing to impute this to want of convenient 
accommodations, but it may be generally observed, that along the 
whole coast the same shyness prevails, while in the interior the 
people vie with each other in acts of hospitality. Perhaps in all coun- 
tries this duty is most practised where the occasions for its exercise 
most rarely occur. 

Being unable to procure a bed at Santos, we were obliged to en- 
gage a canoe to convey us up the river to Cuberton, where we ar- 
rived at two in the morning, and were introduced into the guard- 
house for a lodging. The corporal being called up, accommodated 
us as well as he was able ; we lay down on the softest planks we 
could find, and made pillows of our portmanteaus, but though much 
wearied we found ourselves little disposed to sleep on so uneasy a 
couch. At sunrise, when we got up, an extraordinary and busy 
scene presented itself ; before the guard-house was a large space of 
ground enclosed by the storehouse and other outbuildings, and here 
above a hundred mules were led out to be harnessed and loaded ; 
the gentleness and tractability of these fine large animals pleased us 
much, and the expertness of their masters, particularly of the negroes, 
in placing and replacing the burdens, was truly surprising. 



( 62 ) 



From the good corporal, who was commanding-officer here, we 
received every attention, and much more civility than we had reason 
to expect from the experience we had of the unaccommodating dis- 
position of the people in Santos, in much better circumstances than 
himself. He procured us a good breakfast, and furnished us with 
saddle mules for our journey, at the rate of ten shillings each, the 
distance being eight leagues. Having obtained a guide we mounted, 
and proceeded about half a mile, when we reached the foot of the 
stupendous mountains we had to cross. The road is good and well 
paved, but narrow, and on account of the rugged acclivities is cut 
in a zig-zag direction, with very frequent and abrupt turnings con- 
tinually on the ascent. The trains of loaded mules which we met 
on their way to Santos rendered the passage disagreeable, and at 
times dangerous. In many places the road is cut through the solid 
rock for several feet, in others along the perpendicular sides, and it 
leads frequently over the tops of conical mountains, along the edge 
of precipices, down which the traveller is liable to be thrown into 
an impervious thicket full thirty yards below. These dangerous 
places are secured by parapets. After ascending for an hour and 
a half, during which time we made innumerable turnings, we ar- 
rived at a resting place, near which, at a spot a little lower than the 
road, we found water. This place, as our guide informed us, was 
only half-way to the summit ; we were astonished at the intelligence, 
as the clouds were already so far below us that they obstructed our 
prospect. During our progress hither, we observed that the mules 
travel as quick on an ascent as on level ground ; they much excel 
the horse in uneven roads with sharp turnings, and still more so in 
bad roads. 

To attempt the geology of mountains so covered by vegetable 
matter would be a difficult task ; the component parts of those 
along which we passed appeared to be granite, and frequently 
soft crumbling ferruginous sand-stone. Some picturesque streams 
bursting from their high sources form fine cascades, and in crossing 



< 63 ) 



the road force their way through many detached and round masses 
of granite. The woods are so thick in every part, except where the 
mules tread, that no soil can be seen ; the branches of the trees 
in some places meet and form an arbour over the road, which 
shades the traveller from the heat of the sun, and shelters him 
from rain. 

After resting for about twenty minutes we again mounted and 
resumed our ascent. The road presented at times four or five zig-zags 
above us at one view, and gave us fresh reason for astonishment at 
the completion of a work so fraught with difficulties. The millions 
of crowns which must have been expended in clearing the woods and 
thickets in its course, and in cutting through the solid rock for a con- 
siderable distance, as well as in paving it through the whole extent of 
the ridge, afford no mean idea of the enterprising spirit of the Bra- 
zilians. Few public works, even in Europe, are superior to it; and 
if we consider that, as the district through which it passes, is but 
thinly inhabited, the labour bestowed on it must have been pur- 
chased most dearly, we shall hardly find one in any country so 
well completed under similar disadvantages. 

In three hours we reached the summit, a plain of considerable 
extent, the lowest estimated height of which is six thousand feet. 
The surface is chiefly composed of quartz covered with sand. 
The sea, though distant twenty miles, seemed to us as if it washed 
the foot of the mountains ; the level part of the coast and the port 
of Santos below us came not within the angle of vision. While we 
enjoyed this sublime prospect, we were refreshed by a cool breeze, 
which renewed our strength and spirits, and enabled us to pursue our 
journey with alacrity. Advancing about a mile and a half, we came 
to a part of the road which was cut several feet deep through the 
rock, and observed in this quarter many small streams which, though 
contiguous to the sea, all flow in a south-west course to an immense 
distance, and, uniting, form the great river Corrientes, which joins the 

9 



( 64 ) 



Plata. This circumstance will sufficiently explain the form of this 
mighty ridge of mountains, namely, that the highest and steepest 
side fronts the sea, and that the other shelves more gradually and 
with more frequent outlets to the plains of the interior. This part of 
the road is lined by fine trees and large thickets on both sides. The 
heavy rains of the season (December) had damaged it in various 
parts ; the readiest mode of repairing these breaks is to cut down 
several trees, about seven inches diameter, place them across, and 
fasten them down with hooked stakes. The mules which travel 
these rugged declivities, though far more hardy than horses, fre- 
quently fall victims to fatigue ; we observed some dead by the way- 
side. In the course of our route we passed several parties of negroes 
and some of Indians, working at repairs in the road, or making new 
branches from it. Some of them I noticed with swellings in the 
neck, though very different from those I have observed in Derby- 
shire and other mountainous countries. In the case of these Indians 
not only there appeared that protuberance from the glands com- 
monly called a wen, but lumps of from half an inch to three inches 
in diameter hung from it in an almost botryoidal form. 

After crossing several rivulets and passing a few houses, we arrived 
at a tolerable inn, belonging to an officer of militia, where we were 
soon provided with plenty of milk, coffee, and fowls. It is distant 
sixteen or twenty miles from St. Paul's, and may be considered as 
half-way between that town and Santos. The owner, who was 
much surprised to see Englishmen, treated us with every civility, 
and procured us a change of saddle-mules. While they were 
preparing, he shewed us a tract of land in front of his house, tole- 
rably well-cleared, where we took an hours shooting. We then 
proceeded through a much more open country, which bore the 
traces of former cultivation, and seemed of late to have been much 
neglected. As we drew nearer St. Paul's, the road improved, and 
was enlivened by a greater number of habitations in its vicinity. 



( 65 ) 



We passed two convents, which had the air of convenient houses, 
and were distinguished by large crosses erected before them. The 
land was watered by several fine streams; in one part we ob- 
served a quarry of ferruginous grit-stone, but we had not leisure 
to make much mineralogical research. St. Paul's, although on 
an elevated site, is not observed at any great distance in this 
direction. In its immediate neighbourhood the river runs parallel 
to the road, which it sometimes partially overflows, and covers 
with sand. To our left we saw a large astallage, or inn, where 
numbers of mules are unloaded, and travellers commonly pass 
the night. It consists of a very large shed, supported upon up- 
right pieces of timber, with separate divisions for receiving the 
cargoes or burdens of the mules, each traveller occupying as 
many as his goods require ; and there is a piece of ground, of 
about a hundred yards in circumference, planted with small up- 
right stakes at ten or fifteen feet distance, to which the bridles of 
the mules are tied while they are fed, saddled, and loaded. 
These astallages are common in all parts of Brazil. 

On entering the town, although we had expected much from 
its being the capital of the district, and the residence of the 
governor, yet we were struck with the neat appearance of its 
houses, stuccoed in various colours ; those in the principal streets 
were two or three stories high. Having arrived an hour or two 
before sun-set, we walked to the house of a gentleman, to whom 
we had a letter of recommendation, but he being absent, we were 
obliged to pass the night at the astallage, where our mules had 
been put up. It was a miserable abode. The next morning we 
breakfasted with our friend, and were conducted by him to 
the governor, Brigadier General Orte, who honoured us with an 
invitation to dinner, permitted a perishable cargo of my friend's 
property, which was lying at Santos, to be unloaded, and gave us 
a general welcome to his palace. We had the good fortune to 

* K 



( 66 ) 



find that two of His Excellency's aides-de-camp, men of excellent 
character, had been educated in England. They assisted us in 
obtaining lodgings, rendered us every service that we stood in 
need of, and shewed an earnest desire to make our stay as agree- 
able as possible. 



( 67 ) 



CHAP. V. 

Description of St. Paul's. — System of Farming prevalent in its 
Neighbourhood. — Excursion to the Gold Mines of Jaragua : — 
Mode of working them. — Return to Santos. 

CT. PAUL's is situated on a pleasing eminence of about two 
miles in extent, surrounded on three sides by low meadow 
land, and washed at the base by rivulets, which almost insulate it in 
rainy weather ; it is connected with the high-land by a narrow ridge. 
The rivulets flow into a pretty large stream called the Tieti, which 
runs within a mile of the town in a south-west direction. Over them 
there are several bridges, some of stone and others of wood, built 
by the late governor. The streets of St. Paul's, owing to its eleva- 
tion (about 50 feet above the plain), and the water which almost 
surrounds it, are in general remarkably clean ; the material with 
which they are paved, is lamillary grit-stone, cemented by oxide of 
iron, and containing large pebbles of rounded quartz, approxi- 
mating to the conglomerate. This pavement is an alluvial formation 
containing gold, many particles of which metal are found in the 
chinks and hollows after heavy rains, and at such seasons are dili- 
gently sought for by the poorer sort of people. 

This city was founded by the Jesuits, who were probably tempted 
by the gold mines in the vicinity, more than by the salubrity of its 
air, which however is not excelled by any on the whole continent 
of South America. The medium of the thermometer here is be- 
tween 50 and 80 degrees; in a morning I have observed it at 48, 
and even lower, though I was not there in the winter months. The 
rains are by no means heavy or of long continuance, and the thunder- 
storms are far from being violent. The cold in the evenings was 

k 2 



{ 68 ) 



frequently so considerable that I was obliged to shut my doors and 
windows, put on more clothes, and have a pan of embers in the 
room, there being no chimneys. 

Here are several squares, and about thirteen places of religious wor- 
ship, namely, two convents, three monasteries, and eight churches, the 
greater part of which, as well as of the whole town, is built of earth. 
The mode of erecting the walls is as follows : a frame is constructed 
of six moveable planks placed edge-wise, opposite each other, and 
secured in this position by cross-pieces bolted with moveable pins. 
Earth is put in by small quantities, which the workmen beat with 
rammers and occasionally moisten with water to give it consistency. 
Having filled the frame or trough, they remove it and continue the 
same operation till the whole shell of the house is completed, taking 
care to leave vacancies and put in the window-frames, door-frames, 
and beams as they proceed. The mass in course of time becomes 
indurated, the walls are pared perfectly smooth inside, and take 
any colour the owner chooses to give them ; they are generally en- 
riched with very ingenious devices. This species of structure is 
durable ; I have seen some houses thus built that have lasted two 
hundred years, and most of them have several stories. The roofs 
are made to project two or three feet beyond the wall, in order to 
throw off the rain to a distance from the base ; spouts might be a 
more effectual preservative against wet, but their use is little known 
here. They cover their houses with gutter-tiles, but though the 
country affords excellent clay and plenty of wood, very few bricks 
are burnt. 

The population of this place amounts to full fifteen thousand 
souls : perhaps nearer twenty thousand ; the clergy, including all 
ranks of religious orders, may be reckoned at five hundred. They 
are in general good members of society, free from that excessive 
bigotry and illiberality which is the reproach of the neighbouring 
colonies, and their example has so beneficial an effect on the rest of 
the inhabitants, that I may presume to say, no stranger will be mo- 



I 69 ) 



lested while he acts as a gentleman, and does not insult the esta- 
blished religion. His Excellency the Bishop is a most worthy pre- 
late, and were the inferior orders in his diocese to follow his steps in 
cultivating the sciences, and diffusing useful information, they 
would command greater respect from their flocks, and by that 
means further the interests of the religion they profess. Priests, 
so ignorant, can hardly escape contempt. 

No endemial diseases at present prevail here. The small-pox 
formerly, and indeed of late, made great havoc among the inhabi- 
tants, but its progress has been checked by the introduction of 
vaccine innoculation* Professors attended at a large hall belonging 
to the governor, to which the public were invited, and the operation 
was performed gratis. It is to be hoped that the credit of this pre- 
ventative will make its way among the people here, for they are 
not competent to enter into the merits of that controversy which 
injured it in Europe. 

Here are few manufactures of any consequence ; a little coarse 
cotton is spun by the hand, and woven into cloth, which serves for 
a variety of wearing apparel, sheets, &c. They make a beautiful 
kind of net-work for hammocks, which are fringed with lace, and 
form an elegant piece of furniture, being slung low, so as to answer 
the purpose of sofas. The ladies are particularly fond of using 
them, especially when the heat of the weather disposes them to ease 
and indolence. The making of lace is a general employment for 
females, some of whom excel in it. The shop-keepers here are a 
numerous class, who, as in most colonial towns, deal in almost every 
thing, and sometimes make great fortunes. Here are few doctors 
of medicine, but many apothecaries ; some silver-smiths, whose 
articles are equally indifferent both in metal and workmanship ; 
tailors and shoe-makers in great numbers ; and joiners, who manu- 
facture very beautiful wood, but are not so moderate in their 
charges as the former classes of tradesmen. In the out-skirts of the 
city live a number of Creolian Indians, who make earthen-ware for 



( 70 ) 



culinary purposes, large water-jars, and a variety of other utensils 
ornamented with some taste. The greatest proportion of the inha- 
bitants consists in farmers and inferior husbandmen, who cultivate 
small portions of land, on which they breed large stocks of pigs and 
poultry for sale. With these the market is generally well-supplied, 
and in the fruit-season is also stored with pines, grapes, peaches, 
guavas, bananas, a few apples, and an enormous quantity of 
quinces. 

Esculent plants are grown in great profusion and variety. Here 
is a favourite bulbous root called the Cara, which is equal to the best 
potatoe, and even more farinaceous; it grows to about five inches 
in diameter, and affords excellent food either boiled or roasted. 
Here are fine cabbages, sallad-herbs, turnips, cauliflowers, arti- 
chokes, and potatoes ; the latter, though very good, are little used : 
the sweet potatoe is in greater request among the natives. Maize, 
beans, green-peas, and every 7 species of pulse flourish amazingly. 
Fowls are cheap ; we bought some at three-pence and sixpence 
each ; small pigs from one to two shillings, and flitches of bacon, 
cured after the mode of the country, at about two-pence per pound. 
Turkies, geese, and ducks are abundant, and reasonable in price, 
the latter are of the Muscovy breed, enormously large, some weigh- 
ing ten or fourteen pounds. Here is a singular breed of cocks ; 
they resemble the common English in plumage and shape, but they 
crow very loud, and continue their last note for a minute or two. 
When their voice is good, they are much esteemed, and are sent for 
as curiosities from all parts of Brazil. The cattle are in general 
good, considering that so little attention is paid to feeding them j 
when their pastures are full of grass, they are tolerably fat, but when 
otherwise they become lean. A drove may be bought at 24s. or 
30s. a head ; beef at about a penny or three-halfpence per pound. 
The curriers have a singular method of blackening cow-hides and 
calf-skins: when they have prepared them for that operation, they 
search for some mud-hole at the bottom of a ferruginous stratum, 

9 



( 71 ) 



a ditch for instance ; with the mud they cover that side of the skin 
required to be stained ; and they prefer this material to the solution 
of copperas, probably with reason, as the sulphate of iron formed 
by the decomposed pyrites acts more mildly in this state than when 
applied in the common way. 

The horses are very fine, and in general docile ; when well trained 
they make excellent chargers. Their size is from 12| to 14f hands, 
and they vary in price from three pounds to twelve. Mules, as we 
have before observed, are considered more useful beasts of burden. 
The breed of sheep is quite unattended to, and mutton is rarely 
or never eaten. Here is a very fine and large breed of goats, whose 
milk is generally used for domestic purposes. The dogs are very 
indifferent, and of no distinct race. 

In my. walks round the city, I had frequent opportunities of exa- 
mining the singular succession of horizontal strata, that form the 
eminence on which it stands. They lie in the following order : »t*i 
first, one of red vegetable earth of variable depth, impregnated 
with oxide of iron ; below that, sand and adventitious matter of 
different shades of colour, as ochre-red, brown, and dusky yellow* 
together with many rounded pebbles, which indicate it to be of ra- 
ther recent formation ; it varies in depth from three to six feet, or 
perhaps to seven, and its lower part is uniformly yellow : under this 
is a bed of exceedingly fine clay of various colours, but for the most 
part purple ; the white and yellow is the purest in quality ; it is in- 
tervened with thin layers of sand in various directions. Then suc- 
ceeds a stratum of alluvial matter, which is very ferruginous ; it 
rests on a half-decomposed substance, apparently migrating from a 
granite, ill which the proportion of feld-spar exceeds that of the quartz 
and mica*. The whole is incumbent on compact granite. The 



* Probably the colouring matter arises from decomposition of the mica ; I have fre- 
quently observed a mass of granite having its surface decomposed into a red clay, in which 
the particles of mica were hardly perceptible, while the compact rock below contained a 
very fair proportion of that substance. 



( 72 ) 



sides of the mount are steep, and in some places nearly perpendi- 
cular *. 

The fertility of the country around St. Paul's may be inferred from 
the quantities of produce, with which, as I have stated, its market 
is supplied. About a century ago, this tract abounded with gold ; 
and it was not until they had exhausted it by washing, that the 
inhabitants thought of employing themselves in husbandry. As they 
did so more from necessity than from choice, they were tardy in 
pursuing those improvements which other nations have made in this 
noble art, and, pining at the disappearance of the precious mineral, 
considered their new occupation as vile and degrading. Indeed 
throughout the whole of Brazil, the husbandmen have ever been con- 
sidered as forming a class greatly inferior in point of respectability 
to the miners ; and this prejudice will in all likelihood subsist until 
the country shall have been drained of its gold and diamonds, when 
the people will be compelled to seek in agriculture a constant and 
inexhaustible source of wealth. 

I shall attempt to describe the system of farming which at present 
prevails in the neighbourhood of St. Paul's. It has been elsewhere 
observed that, in this extensive empire, land is granted in large tracts, 
on proper application ; and we may naturally suppose that the value 
of these tracts depends more or less on their situation. It therefore 
becomes the first object of a cultivator, to look out for unoccupied 
lands as near as possible to a large town ; good roads and navigable 
rivers are the desiderata next in point of consequence which he 
attends to. When he has made choice of a situation, he applies to 
the governor of the district, who orders the proper officers to mark 
out the extent required, generally a league or a league and a half 
square, sometimes more. 'J 'he cultivator then purchases as many 
negroes as he can, and commences his operations by erecting habi- 



* In one part of the town is found a beautiful species of decomposed granite, consisting 
of extremely white feld-spar, quartz, and very little mica. 



( 73 ) 



tations for them and himself, which are generally miserable sheds, 
supported by four posts, and commonly called ranchos. His negroes 
are then directed to cut down the trees and brushwood growing on 
the land, to such an extent as he thinks they will be able to 
manage. This done, they set fire to all they have cut, as it lies 
on the ground. Much of the success of his harvest depends on 
this burning ; if the whole be reduced to ashes he expects a great 
crop ; if, through wet weather, the felled trees remain only half burnt, 
he prognosticates a bad one. Wfien the ground is cleared, the ne- 
groes dibble it with their hoes, and sow their maize, beans, or other 
pulse ; during the operation they cut down any thing very much in 
the way, but never think of working the soil. After sowing as much 
seed as is thought requisite, they prepare other ground for planting 
cassada, here called mandioca, the root of which is generally eaten 
as bread by all ranks in Brazil. The soil * for this purpose is 
rather better prepared ; it is raked up in little round hillocks, not 
unlike mole-hills, about four feet asunder ; into which are stuck 
cuttings from branches of the plant, about an inch thick and six or 
eight long ; these soon take root, and put forth leaves, shoots, and 
buds. When enough has been planted for the entire consumption of 
the farm, the owner, if he is rich enough, prepares means for grow- 
ing and manufacturing sugar. He first employs a carpenter to cut 
wood, and build a mill with wooden rollers for crushing the canes, 
by means of water if a stream is at hand, if not, by the help of 
mules. While some of the negroes are assisting the carpenter, 
others are employed in preparing ground in the same way as for 
mandioca. Pieces of cane containing three or four joints, and in 
length about six inches, cut from the growing stem, are laid in the 
earth nearly horizontally, and are covered with soil to the depth of 
about four inches. They shoot up rapidly, and in three months 
have a bushy appearance not unlike flags ; in twelve or fifteen 



Mandioca requires a dry hot soil, of a sandy nature. 



( 74 ) 



months more they are ready for cutting. In rich virgin soil it is not 
uncommon to see canes twelve feet high and astonishingly thick. 

The Indian corn and pulse are in general ripe in four months or 
eighteen weeks. The average return is two hundred for one ; it is 
a bad harvest when it falls short of one hundred and fifty. 

The mandioca is rarely ready to take up in less than eighteen or 
twenty months ; if the land be suitable, it then produces from six to 
twelve pound weight per plant*. They grow very little indigo in 
this neighbourhood, and what they have is of indifferent quality. 
Their pumpkins are of enormous size, and sometimes are served up 
as table-vegetables, but more frequently given as food to the horses. 
Melons here are scarcely palatable. 

In no branch, of husbandry are the farmers so. defective as in the I 
management of cattle. No artificial grasses are cultivated, no en^ 
closures are made, nor is any fodder laid up against the season of 
scarcity. The cows are never milked regularly ; they seem to be con- 
sidered rather as an incumbrance to a farm than a valuable part of 
the stock. They constantly require salt, which is given them once 
in fifteen or twenty days, in small proportions. Their dairies, if 
such they may be called, are managed in so slovenly a manner, 
that the little butter that is made becomes rancid in a few days, 
and the cheese is good for nothing. In this essential department 
they are deplorably deficient; rarely indeed is there to be seen a 
farm with one convenience belonging to it. For want of proper 



* This generous root requires but little preparation to make it serve as a substitute for 
bread. When taken out of the ground they wash and scrape it clean, and then rasp it on 
a coarse grater of iron or copper, press the juice from it, and place it on a hot surface, a 
shallow copper-pan for instance, four or five feet in diameter, or a clay one, with a brisk 
fire underneath; while drying it is constantly stirred, and when the moisture is completely 
evaporated, it is immediately fit for use. If preserved from wet, it will keep good a long 
time. In broths and soups it becomes gelatinous, and affords rich nourishment ; it is par- 
ticularly good when eaten with cheese. The wild or spurious mandioca, called Ipe, is 
little inferior, when roasted, to fine chesnuts. The Portugueze introduce it at table, boiled 
as well as roasted. 



( 75 ) 



places in which to store their produce, they are obliged to lay it 
in promiscuous heaps ; and it is not uncommon to see coffee, cotton, 
maize, and beans, thrown into the corners of a damp shed, and 
covered with a green hide. One half is invariably spoiled by mould 
and putridity, and the remainder is much deteriorated, through 
this idle and stupid negligence. 

They feed their pigs on Indian corn in a crude state ; the time for 
confining them to fatten is at eight or ten months old ; and the 
quantity consumed for the purpose is eight or ten Winchester 
bushels each. When killed, the lean is cut off the sides as clean as 
possible, the fat is cured with very little salt, and in a few days is 
ready for market. The ribs, chine-bone, and lean parts are dried 
for home consumption. 

The farm-houses are miserable hovels -of one story, the floor neither 
paved nor boarded, and the walls and partitions formed of wicker- 
work plastered with mud, and never under-drawn. For an idea of the 
kitchen, which ought to be the cleanest and most comfortable part 
of the dwelling, the reader may figure to himself a filthy room with 
an uneven muddy floor, interspersed with pools of slop-water, and 
in different parts fire-places formed by three round stones to hold 
the earthen pots that are used for boiling meat ; as green wood is 
the chief fuel, the place is almost always filled with smoke, which, 
finding no chimney, vents itself through the doors and other aper- 
tures, and leaves all within as black as soot. I regret to say 
that the kitchens of many opulent people are in not much better 
condition. 

It may well be imagined that in a country like this, a stranger 
finds the greatest comfort and enjoyment out of doors. The gar- 
dens in St. Paul's, and its vicinity, are laid out with great taste, and 
many of them with curious elegance. The jasmine is every where 
a favourite tree, and in this fine climate bears flowers perennially, 
as does the rose. Carnations, pinks, passion-flowers, cocks-combs, 
&c. grow in great plenty ; one of their most estimable shrubs is the 

l 2 



( re ) 



Palma Christi, which gives fruit the first year, and yields abundance 
of castor-oil, which all families possess in such quantity, that no 
other sort is burnt. 

Bees are by no means uncommon ; they are easily domesticated, 
and, I believe, are perfectly harmless. Their honey is pleasant ; 
the wax, particularly that generally sold, which is taken from their 
nests in old forest^trees, is very foul, but might be purified by a very 
simple process. The woods contain a great variety of animals of 
the monkey kind, and also beasts of prey, some of which have 
tolerably good fur. Among these may be classed a peculiar species 
of the otter. Insects are numerous, but the mosquitos are not so 
offensively so as in the Rio de la Plata. The animalculum, called 
the niagua or jigger, is troublesome; it beds itself under the nails of 
the toes, and sometimes of the fingers, but it may easily be banished 
by extracting it and its bag of eggs with a needle, and filling the 
cavity with calomel or snuff, for fear auy should have remained. 
Reptiles, I was told, were very numerous, but I saw few, except 
toads, which in the evenings crawl upon the foot paths, and even 
infest the streets of the city. The sorocooco or jararraca (serpents) 
are said to be very dangerous. 

The woods produce large and durable timber, well calculated for 
building. Of their trees, all of which retain their Indian names, 
some yield very fine gums. The jacaranda, called in England rose- 
wood, is here very common. Many of their shrubs bear beautiful 
flowers, and are very aromatic. Among the innumerable creeping 
plants which clothe the soil of their uncleared lands, there are 
some distinguished as infallible antidotes to the bite of venomous 
reptiles ; one in particular, called the corazao de Jesu *, is univer- 
sally esteemed. 

Beyond the plain which nearly encircles St. Paul's, the country is 
hilly, or rather mountainous. Had the period of my stay been 



* Its leaf is shaped like a heart. 



( 77 ) 



longer, I should have devoted some time to a j geological tour in 
that district ; but having urgent reasons to hasten my departure for 
Rio de Janeiro, I had leisure to take only one excursion of this 
kind. The governor invited me to visit the old gold-mines of Jara- 
gua, the first discovered in Brazil, which were now his property, 
together with a farm in their vicinity, distant about twenty-four 
miles from the city. We travelled along a tolerable, and in some 
places, fine road, in a southerly direction, for twelve miles, and 
crossed the Tieti. This river is here considerably larger and deeper 
than in the neighbourhood of St. Paul's ; it has an excellent wooden 
bridge, free from toll. On its banks there are some situations truly 
enviable ; fine rich virgin lands covered with timber, and capable 
of producing, not only the necessaries, but the luxuries of life, in 
a hundredfold degree, if properly cultivated. It was melancholy 
to behold a territory, which, for its teeming soil and genial climate, 
deserves to be called a paradise, neglected and solitary like that of 
Eden after the fall; while its infatuated possessors, like the offspring 
of Cain, hungering for gold, kept aloof from the rich feast which 
nature here spread before them. 

After travelling onward four leagues, we arrived at the ancient 
mines of Jaragua, famed for the immense treasures they produced 
nearly two centuries ago, when at the ports of Santos and St. Vin- 
cent, whence the gold was shipped for Europe, this district was re- 
garded as the Peru of Brazil. The face of the country is uneven 
and rather mountainous. The rock, where it is exposed* appears 
to be primitive granite, inclining to gneiss, with a portion of horn- 
blende, and frequently mica. The soil is red, and remarkably fer- 
ruginous, in many places apparently of great depth. The gold lies, 
for the most part, in a stratum of rounded pebbles and gravel, 
called cascalhao, immediately incumbent on thcsolid rock. In the 
valleys, where there is water, occur frequent excavations, made by 
the gold-washers, to a considerable extent, some of them fifty or a 
hundred feet wide, and eighteen or twenty deep. On many of the 

9 



( 78 ) 



hills, where water can be collected for washing, particles of gold are 
Ibund in the soil, little deeper than the roots of the grass. 

The mode of working these mines, more fitly to be denominated 
washings, is simple, and may be easily explained : 

Suppose a loose gravel-like stratum of rounded quartzose pebbles 
and adventitious matter, incumbent on granite, and covered by 
earthy matter of variable thickness. Where water of sufficiently 
high level can be commanded, the ground is cut in steps, each 
twenty or thirty feet wide, two or three broad, and about one deep. 
Near the bottom a trench is cut to the depth of two or three feet. 
On each step, stand six or eight negroes, who, as the water flows 
gently from above, keep the earth continually in motion with shovels, 
until the whole is reduced to liquid mud and washed below. The 
particles of gold contained in this earth descend to the trench^ 
where, by reason of their specific gravity, they quickly precipitate. 
Workmen are continually employed at the trench to remove the 
stones, and clear away the surface, which operation is much as- 
sisted by the current of water which falls into it. After five days' 
washing, the precipitation in the trench is carried to some conve- 
nient stream, to undergo a second clearance. For this purpose 
wooden bowls are provided, of a funnel shape, about two feet wide 
at the mouth, and five or six inches deep, called gamellaz. Each 
workman standing in the stream, takes into his bowl five or six 
pounds weight of the sediment, which generally consists of heavy 
matter, such as oxide of iron, pyrites, ferruginous quartz, &c. of 
a dark carbonaceous hue. They admit certain quantities of water 
into the bowls, which they move about so dexterously, that the 
precious metal, separating from the inferior and lighter substances, 
settles to the bottom and sides of the vessel. They then rinse their 
bowls in a larger vessel of clean water, leaving the gold in it ; and 
begin again. The washing of each bowlful occupies from five to 
eight or nine minutes ; the gold produced is extremely variable in 
quantity, and in the size of its particles, some of which are so 



( 79 ) 



minute, that they float, while others are found as large as peas, and 
not unfrequently much larger. This operation is superintended by 
overseers, as the result is of considerable importance. When the 
whole is finished, the gold is borne home to be dried, and at a con- 
venient time is taken to the permutation office, where it is weighed, 
and a fifth is reserved for the Prince. The remainder is smelted by 
fusion with muriate of mercury, cast into ingots, assayed, and 
stamped according to its intrinsic value, a certificate of which is 
given with it ; after a copy of that instrument has been duly entered 
at the mint-office, the ingots circulate as specie. 

My attention was strongly engaged by the immense debris or re- 
fuse of old washings, which lay in numberless heaps, and contained 
various substances that gave me strong hope of finding some inte- 
resting and valuable specimens of tourmalines, topazes, and other 
crystallizations, and also a rich series of rocks, which might form 
the geognostics of the country. So strongly was I prepossessed with 
this hope, that I really fancied I had within my reach some of the 
finest mineral products of Brazil. Early one morning, before the sun 
became too hot for work, I set out accompanied by two or three men, 
with iron crows and hammers, whom I had engaged to assist me. We 
broke up immense quantities of quartzose and granite-like matter in 
various stages of decomposition, and others of a ferruginous kind, but 
after pursuing the operation for three whole days, until my hands could 
no longer wield the hammer, I was obliged to give up the search as 
fruitless; not a grain of gold did I find, nor any thing of the nature 
of crystallization, except some miserable quartz, a little cubic and 
Oct ae dial pyrites, and some very poor manganese ! In short the sub- 
stances presented so little novelty, and were in themselves so ordi- 
nary, that I hesitated whether I should carry them with me to 
St. Paul's. This disappointment at the first gold mines I had seen, 
not a little dejected me. 

In company with the Governor and his lady, I now took a surve}' 
of the farm ; we walked and rode through extensive plantations, 



( 80 ) 



the productions of which, as well as the mode of culture pursued, 
were similar to those I have already described. Our next recreation 
was hunting the deer. Let not the reader imagine that I am going 
to lead him a chase through miles of country with a pack of hounds 
and a joyous company of horsemen; the mode of hunting in Brazil 
affords no such diversion. Three or four men go out armed with 
guns and attended by two or three dogs ; the men separate and 
wait in some open place ; meanwhile the dogs quest among the 
plantations and thickets ; if they find, they drive the game out, 
which the hunters immediately shoot. The deer are small, and 
of the fallow kind ; but their flesh is not esteemed. 

The wild animals of this district are chiefly monkej's, sloths, a 
variety of the porcupine, and opossums. These, and other predatory 
beasts, make great havoc among the poultry. Of the feathered 
tribe there are not many varieties ; I shot several becassinas and 
beautiful lapwings * with red horns on each pinion, about half an 
inch in length. Here are great numbers of parrots and parroquets. 

The vampire-bat, so often described by travellers, is a most for- 
midable foe to the horses and mules. If he gets access to them in 
the night, he fixes on the neck-vein, above the shoulder, and sucks it 
to such a degree as to leave the animal almost covered with blood, 
fanning with his wings all the while he retains his hold, in order (as 
it should seem) to lull the pain caused by his bite. 

The garden has a bed of fine potatoes, which were planted three 
or four years ago by Mr. Quarten, from Gibraltar, They are sufc 
fered to grow and reproduce themselves from season to season, none 
being taken up unless when wanted for food. Cabbages and other 
vegetables for the table grow in abundance, 



* In the Spanish territories they are called disperttros (awakeners), on account of the noise 
they make when disturbed in the night. A flock of them in any plantation answers the pur- 
pose of an alarm-bell against thieves, 



( W 1 



This farm has the advantage of very fine timber in its neighbour- 
hood, and when the improvements, begun by the governor, are com- 
pleted, it will be well provided with water, brought from a distance 
of six miles, in sufficient quantities to wash the hills, and to 
work the machinery of a sugar-mill. On the estate were employed 
about fifty negroes, and half that number of free Indians; the 
latter ate at their master's expence, and earned about sixpence a day ; 
but they appeared far less laborious and handy than the negroes. 
They were clearing grounds and making walks in a wood, which 
when finished will render the place a most agreeable summer-retreat. 

Among the many marks of kindness with which the governor 
honoured me, I must not omit his repeated assurances, that in 
the event of war between our respective countries, which was then 
talked of, he would not detain me. After remaining here five days, 
which were rendered as agreeable as possible by the polite civilities 
of my host, we set out on our return in the order in which we came : 
the governor and his lady in a carriage drawn by four mules, his 
aide-de-camp and myself on horseback, and six dragoons in front, 
the guard always allowed to an officer of his rank. We arrived at 
St. Paul's without any material occurrence. 

This city is seldom visited by foreigners. The passes to it from the 
coast are so singularly situated, that it is almost impossible to avoid 
the guards who are stationed in them, to inspect all travellers and 
merchandize passing into the interior. Soldiers of the lowest rank 
on these stations have a right to examine all strangers who present 
themselves, and to detain them and their property, unless they 
can produce passports. I and my friends in our way hither were 
thrice obliged to exhibit our licence from the governor of Santos, 
which was attested. Our appearance at St. Paul's excited con- 
siderable curiosity among all descriptions of people, who seemed by 
their manner never to have seen Englishmen before j the very children 
testified their astonishment, some by running away, others by 
counting our fingers, and exclaiming, that we had the same number 

M 



( m ) 



as they. Many of the good citizens invited us to their houses, and 
sent for their friends to come and look at us. As the dwelling we 
occupied was very large, we were frequently entertained by crowds 
of young persons of both sexes, who came to the door to see how 
we ate and drank. It was gratifying to us to perceive that this 
general wonder subsided into a more social feeling ; we met with 
civil treatment every where, and were frequently invited to dine 
with the inhabitants. At the public parties and balls of the gover- 
nor we found both novelty and pleasure ; novelty at being much 
more liberally received than we were in the Spanish settlements, and 
pleasure at being in much more refined and polished company. 

The dress of the ladies abroad, and especially at church, consists 
of a garment of black silk, with a long veil of the same material, 
trimmed with broad lace ; in the cooler season black cassimere or 
baize. In the same veil they almost always appear in the streets, 
though it has been partially superseded by a long coat of coarse 
woollen, edged with velvet, gold lace, fustian, or plush, according 
to the rank of the wearer. This coat is used as a general sort of 
undress, at home, in their evening walks, and on a journey, and the 
ladies, whenever they wear it, appear in round hats. The appella- 
tion of Paulista is considered by all the females here as a great 
honour; the Paulistas being celebrated throughout all Brazil for 
their attractions, and their dignity of character. At table they are 
extremely abstemious ; their favourite amusement is dancing, in 
which they display much vivacity and grace. At balls and other 
public festivals they generally appear in elegant white dresses, with 
a profusion of gold chains about their necks, their hair tastefully 
disposed and fastened with combs. Their conversation, at all times 
sprightly, seems to derive additional life from music. Indeed the 
whole range of their education appears to be confined to superficial ac- 
complishments ; they trouble themselves very little with domestic 
concerns, confiding whatever relates to the inferior departments of the 
household to the negro or negra cook, and leaving all other matters 



( 83 ) 



to the management of servants. Owing to this indifference* they are 
total strangers to the advantages of that order, neatness, and pro- 
priety, which reign in an English family ; their time at home is 
mostly occupied in sewing, embroidery, and lace-making. Another 
circumstance repugnant to delicacy is, that they have no mantua- 
makers of their own sex ; all articles of female dress here are made 
by tailors. An almost universal debility prevails among them, 
which is partly attributable to their abstemious living, but chiefly 
to want of exercise, and to the frequent warm-bathings in which 
they indulge. They are extremely attentive to every means of 
improving the delicacy of their persons, perhaps to the injury of 
their health. 

The men in general, especially those of the higher rank, officers, and 
others, dress superbly ; in company they are very polite and attentive, 
and shew every disposition to oblige ; they are great talkers and 
prone to conviviality. The lower ranks, compared with those of 
other colonial towns, are in a very advanced state of civilization. 
It were to be wished that some reform were instituted in their system 
of education ; the children of slaves are brought up during their 
early days with those of their masters ; they are play-mates and 
companions, and thus a familiar equality is established between 
them, which has to be forcibly abolished when they arrive at that 
age, at which one must command and live at his ease, while the 
other must labour and obey. It has been said, that by thus at- 
taching the slave to his master, in early youth, they ensure his 
future fidelity, but the custom seems fraught with many disadvan- 
tages, and ought at least to be so modified as to render the yoke of 
bondage less galling by the recollection of former liberty. 

The religious processions here are very splendid, grand, and so- 
lemn ; they have a striking effect, by reason of the profound vene- 
ration and enthusiastic zeal manifested by the populace. On par- 
ticular occasions of this kind all the inhabitants of the city attend, 
and the throng is frequently increased by numbers of the neigh- 

m 2 



( 84 ) 



bouring peasantry for several leagues round. The balconies of 
those houses, which command the best views of the spectacle, are 
crowded with ladies in their gala dresses, who consider the day as 
a kind of festival; the evening is generally concluded by tea and 
card-parties or dances. 

We found very little difficulty in accommodating ourselves to the 
general mode of living at St. Paul's. The bread is pretty good, and 
the butter tolerable, but rarely used except with coffee for break- 
fast, or tea in the evening. A more common breakfast is a very 
pleasant sort of beans, called feijones, boiled or mixed with man- 
dioca. Dinner, which is usually served up at noon or before, com- 
monly consists of a quantity of greens boiled with a little fat pork 
or beef, a root of the potatoe kind, and a stewed fowl, with excel- 
lent sallad, to which succeeds a great variety of delicious conserves 
and sweet-meats. Very little wine is taken at meals ; the usual 
beverage is water. On public occasions, or when a feast is given to 
a large party, the table is most sumptuously spread ; from thirty to 
fifty dishes are served up at once, by which arrangement a succes- 
sion of courses is obviated. Wine circulates copiously, and toasts 
are given during the repast, which usually occupies two or three 
hours, and is succeeded by sweet-meats, the pride of their tables ; 
after coffee the company pass the evening in dancing, music, or cards. 

I may here observe, that neither in St. Paul's nor in any other 
place which I visited, did I witness any instance of that levity in 
the females of Brazil, which some writers alledge to be the leading 
trait in their character. I allude to the custom which has been said 
to prevail among them, of throwing flowers from the balconies on 
such of the passers-by as they take a fancy to, or of presenting a 
flower or a nosegay to their favourites, as a mark of partiality. The 
circumstance which seems to have given rise to such an ill-founded 
conjecture is this : flowers are here considered an indispensable part 
of the female head-dress, and when a stranger is introduced to a 
lady, it., is nothing more than an, act of common courtesy for 

9 



( 85 ) 



her to take one from her hair to present to him. This elegant com- 
pliment he is expected to return in the course of the visit, by se- 
lecting a flower from the profuse variety which adorn the garden, 
or the balcony, and presenting it to her. 

One singular custom I must not omit to notice, that of throwing 
artificial fruit, such as lemons or oranges, made very delicately 
of wax and filled with perfumed water. On the two first days of 
Lent, which are here celebrated with great festivity, persons of both 
sexes amuse themselves by throwing these balls at each other ; the 
lady generally begins the game, the gentleman returns it with such 
spirit that it seldom ceases until several dozens are thrown, and both 
parties are as wet as if they had been drawn through a river. Some- 
times a lady will dexterously drop one into the bosom of a gentle- 
man, which will infallibly oblige him to change his linen, as it 
usually contains three or four ounces of cold water. On these days 
of carnival the inhabitants parade the streets in masks, and the 
diversion of throwing fruit is practised by persons of all ages. It is 
reckoned improper for men to throw at each other. The manufac- 
ture of these missiles, at such periods, affords no inconsiderable 
occupation to certain classes of the inhabitants ; I have been in- 
formed that in the capital of Brazil many hundreds of people 
derive a temporary subsistence from the sale of them. The practice 
(as I can testify) is very annoying to strangers, and not unfrequently 
engenders quarrels which terminate seriously. 

During our stay here an unpleasant report was circulated, that the 
port of Lisbon was shut against the English, and that war was 
daily expected to be declared between the two powers. Had it not 
been for the kindness of the governor in offering to permit our de- 
parture before he should receive orders to the contrary, we should 
have felt ourselves in a very disagreeable predicament. But news 
soon arrived that His Royal Highness the Prince Regent had left 
Portugal with all the court, and that they were embarked for the 



( m ) 



Brazils, under the escort of a British squadron, dispatched by 
Sir Sidney Smith. This intelligence was most joyfully received by 
the Brazilians ; they considered, indeed, that the occupation of 
Portugal by the French was a disaster very likely to ensue, but 
they consoled themselves with the hope of receiving a Prince, in 
whose praise every tongue was eloquent, and to whose cause every 
heart was loyal. The Brazilian empire was considered as established; 
and the worthy bishop consecrated the auspicious era by ordaining 
daily prayers in the cathedral, to invoke from Divine Providence the 
safe arrival of the Royal Family. News of their having touched at 
Bahia arrived in about ten days, and was welcomed by every de- 
monstration of public joy, processions, fire-works, &c. Hoping 
every day to hear of their arrival at Rio de Janeiro, I made all ready 
for my departure, and devoted the few remaining days to a second 
excursion to the gold-mines, and to some farewell visits among my 
friends in the vicinity of St. Paul's. The governor and many of the 
principal inhabitants gave us parting invitations, and by their urba- 
nity rendered the last hours we passed with them at once delightful 
and melancholy. Some of the latter accompanied us two leagues on 
our way, and on separating testified the warmest wishes for our 
welfare. 

I never recall to mind the civilities I received at this city without 
the most grateful emotions, in which those will best sympathize who 
have known what it is to visit a remote city in a strange country, 
where, according to the narratives of preceding travellers, nothing 
prevailed but barbarism and inhospitality, and where they have been 
agreeably undeceived. It may easily be supposed that I found it 
difficult to reconcile the character of the Paulistas, such as I beheld 
it, with the strange accounts of their spurious origin, quoted by 
modern geographers. These accounts, founded on the suspicious 
testimony of the jesuits of Paraguay, and at variance with the best 
Portugueze historians, have been of late most ably confuted by an 



( 87 ) 



enlightened member of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Lisbon *. 
He fully exposes the inconsistencies of Vaissette and Charlevoix, in 
ascribing the origin of St. Paul's to a band of refugees, composed of 
Spaniards, Portuguese, Mestizos, Mulattos and others, who fled 
hither from various parts of Brazil, and established a free-booting 
republic; and he satisfactorily shews that the first settlers were Indians 
of Piratininga and Jesuits, and that the city from its first founda- 
tion never acknowledged any other sovereignty than that of Portugal. 
The veracity of this account is further supported by the predominant 
character of the Paulistas, who, far from inheriting the obloquy which 
an ancestry of rogues and vagabonds would have entailed upon them, 
have long been famed throughout all Brazil for their probity, their 
industry, and the mildness of their manners -jv 



* Fr. Gaspar da Madre de Decs. 

f I may also add their public spirit in resenting injuries done to individuals, and in 
supporting the cause of the oppressed ; a singular instance of which I have often heard 
related. Some seventy years ago one of their governors, who was a nobleman, had an in- 
trigue with the daughter of a mechanic; The whole town espoused the cause of the injured 
female, and compelled the governor, at the peril of his life, to marry her. 



( 88 ) 



CHAP. VI. 

Coasting Voyage from Santos to Zapitiva, and Journey thence to Rio 

de Janeiro. 



'y^TE left St. Paul's at ten in the morning, and took the same road 
to Santos by which we had come, there being no other, fit to 
travel. On the following day, before noon, we arrived at Cuberton* 
where we were detained by rain, until four in the afternoon. About 
seven we arrived at Santos, and as we were provided with a letter 
of introduction to a judge, and another to a merchant, we relied on 
a kinder welcome than we had met with on our first visit, the more 
so as we came from St. Paul's. We were, however, deceived. The 
judge received us coldly, and when I asked him where the person 
lived to whom our other letter was addressed, he seemed quite re- 
joiced at the opportunity for shewing us out of his house. The 
merchant was as frigid as the judge, and made us a paltry excuse. 
We then repaired to an apothecary, from whom we had experienced 
some acts of attention, and who had attended one of our friends, 
who, having left St. Paul's in a bad state of health, had waited here 
three weeks for a passage to Rio de Janeiro. After telling him our 
situation, and stating that the wet weather prevented us from pass- 
ing the night in our canoe, he kindly offered us his shop-floor for a 
lodging, it being the only place under cover he had to spare. We 
commissioned him to offer four dollars to any of his neighbours who 
would admit us for the night, but he said it would be of no avail, as 
the people of Santos were proverbially notorious for their want of 
hospitality. The great influx of strangers and renegadoes from all 
nations into this and other towns on the coast, had completely 
steeled the hearts of the people against those claims on their good- 



( 89 ) 



will, which the inhabitants of the interior, less frequently imposed 
upon, are ever ready to acknowledge and to satisfy. 

Thus disappointed, we resolved not to wait at Santos for a ship, 
but to proceed to Rio de Janeiro, along the coast, in a canoe. Hav- 
ing hired one we embarked, and after rowing all night in a strait 
between the continent and the island of St. Omar, which forms one 
of the passages to Santos from sea, we arrived by sun-rise at Berti- 
oga, situated at the north end of that island. It is a village, con- 
sisting of some tolerably good buildings, erected for the convenience 
of the Captain Mor and his attendants, who superintend a fishing 
establishment here, similar to that near St. Catherine's, and belong- 
ing to the same company, but very much inferior in point of extent 
and capacity. At both places the most expert of the negroes are 
employed in dressing whalebone, which is a considerable article of 
commerce, though smaller and less valuable than that of the Green- 
land whale. Along the coast which we passed, are several fine 
bays, where, in the best times of the fishery, large quantities of 
whales were annually caught. The buildings for boiling the blub- 
ber and storing the oil were conveniently situated 

The fine harbour of Bertioga is well sheltered from all winds, and 
the town itself, being situated at the foot of a hill, is protected from 
the inclemencies of the weather, and is at times inconveniently warm. 
The basis of the hill is primitive granite, composed of hornblende, 
feld-spar, quartz, and mica. Fine springs of water, bursting from 
various parts, give variety to the scenery, and an agreeable fresh- 
ness to the air. Though the place bore the appearance of poverty, 
we observed no signs of want ; the sea affords great plenty and variety 
of eatable fish, and the soil produces pulse, of various sorts, and 
rice, quantities of which we saw loading in boats for Santos, The 
people with whom we had to treat used us civilly, and seemed 
anxious to anticipate and to gratify all our requests. As the -Cap- 
tain Mor was ill, he could not render us any assistance in procuring 

N 



( 90 ) 



a passage for St. Sebastian ; we were therefore obliged to hire the 
canoe to go forward. 

A strong current setting in-shore detained us until midnight; 
we then took advantage of a calm which succeeded, and rowed 
away for a headland to the eastward, near which we arrived about 
sun-rise, after a most laborious passage. The shore was quite solitary, 
with the exception of two very miserable huts, at which we could 
procure no better a breakfast than muscles. The face of the country 
is low and sandy, covered with underwood and groups of trees, and 
watered by rivulets from a range of mountains apparently about two 
leagues distant. 

A breeze springing up about mid-day, we again embarked, but 
after contending with both elements for four hours, we were obliged 
again to take to our oars, in order to reach Porto Unya before sun- 
set, which, with considerable exertion, we effected. At this place 
we observed a large plantation, belonging to a religious society at 
Santos, who hence derive a great part of their maintenance. Af- 
ter waiting till two in the morning for a change either of wind or 
current, we got out of port and proceeded on our voyage to Rio de 
Janeiro. We rowed against the wind till day-light, and then found 
ourselves near a bluff headland with steep rocks, forming a good 
harbour for boats, called Toque Toque, where we arrived about nine 
o'clock, having passed several conical islands, which are not laid 
down in any chart that I have hitherto seen. Off the point of Toque 
Toque, extends the fine island of St. Sebastian ; the strait between 
it and the main affords an excellent passage, and a good harbour 
for ships of war. 

The wind still blowing fresh against us, we rested awhile, and 
were amused by watching some fishermen haul their nets ashore 
with large draughts of cavelhos in them. These fish weigh from 
fifteen to twenty pounds each, and are caught in great numbers 
along this coast. 



( 91 ) 



Passing point Toque Toque at noon, we entered the strait of 
St. Sebastian. Its width is about three leagues, the land on both 
sides is bold and steep, and being well cultivated has a very grand 
and rich appearance. The varied foliage of the trees, and the dif- 
ferent shades of verdure in the enclosures, combined with the ro* 
mantic situations of the houses dispersed among them, presented a 
view worthy the ablest pencil ; we had full leisure to enjoy it, for the 
wind being still adverse, our progress depended on the toil of our 
wearied boatmen. Several vessels, going the contrary way, passed 
us at full sail, the crews of which added to our chagrin by iro- 
nically wishing us a pleasant voyage. At four in the afternoon 
we arrived at the town of St. Sebastian, situated on a low tract of 
ground about three hundred yards from the beach. The inhabi- 
tants, amounting to two or three thousand, are an indigent and 
not very industrious people ; they subsist chiefly on fish, which was 
the only food we could procure during the three days we staid 
among them. There are some inconsiderable plantations in the 
neighbourhood, where a little indigo is made, and some tolerably 
good tobacco is grown. This town is noted (and formerly was 
much more so) for its very large canoes scooped out of the solid 
timber ; some of them I have seen of almost incredible dimensions. 
The civil government is entrusted to a Captain Mor, whose autho- 
rity is supported by a garrison of ten or fifteen soldiers under the 
command of an ensign. At the house of the latter we took up our 
abode, while waiting for an opportunity to hire a large canoe to 
carry us to Zapitiva, near Rio de Janeiro. The people with whom 
we had to bargain, used every petty means to thwart and impose 
upon us, and our host shewed no disposition to protect us against 
their chicanery, so that we encountered many vexatious delays ere 
we could accomplish our purpose. 

This place is by no means a desirable, or indeed, a tolerable resi- 
dence for a stranger ; it is exposed to all the inconveniences pecu- 
liar to low and sandy situations ; the hot unwholesome weather, sel- 

N 2 



( 92 ) 



dom refreshed by a breeze, tends to multiply the immense swarms 
of mosquitos, which constitute one of the plagues of the Torrid 
Zone. The neighbouring island, on the contrary, being more ele- 
vated, has the advantage of a freer air, and is therefore less 
annoyed by these troublesome insects. It has the reputation of pro- 
ducing the best sugar, rum, and pulse, as well as the finest cattle 
in all Brazil, and these advantages, joined to its convenient situation, 
must render a plantation upon it highly valuable. In common with 
the opposite shore, and the rocks observable in various parts of the 
straits, it appears to be composed of the same primitive granite I 
have before described. Near the town of St. Sebastian's, I found 
some large pieces of basalt, which, when struck, emitted a very clear 
sound ; I saw also some fragments of lime-stone, but these probably 
were part of some vessel's ballast, which had been thrown overboard 
in the bay, and washed ashore. 

Having at length hired a canoe, we embarked for a village 
about five miles distant, called Bayro, where we arrived safe, and 
staid all night at the house of a fisherman, who undertook the 
charge of our navigation until we should arrive at Zapitiva. Bayro 
is a pretty but poor village, built near the beach, and is chiefly 
noted as being the place where most of the earthen-ware used at 
Rio de Janeiro is made. The clay for this purpose appears to be a 
decomposition of feld-spar. Here is a large convent, well built, 
and finely situated. 

About nine in the morning, we embarked in our canoe, which 
was forty feet long, covered with an awning, and rowed by six men. 
In the afternoon we arrived at Porcos, a fine, bold, conical island, 
with good anchorage, but no port. Its coasts abound with excellent 
fish. Here was stationed a guard of soldiers to prevent contraband 
trade, and to give information respecting it ; the officer, an ensign, 
made us welcome to all he had, and treated us with great kindness 
during our short stay. Leaving this place at two in the morning, 
we rowed through an archipelago of islets, and arrived at Porto 



( 93 ) 



Negro, within four leagues of Isle Grande, and the morning follow- 
ing reached a bay in that island. The land isin general very high 
and irregular ; in the interior it is well wooded, and contains some 
excellent iron ore which is very little known. Its coasts are but par- 
tially inhabited. The strait which separates it from the main 
land is an excellent harbour in all its extent, and was the rendez- 
vous of some English privateers during our war with Spain, The 
country in its vicinity is well clothed with large timber, and appears 
very fruitful, but is thinly peopled by a set of men, whose manners 
and pursuits denote them to be outcasts from society. In the 
evening we entered a fine bay, and procured some refreshment at a 
house on the beach, where we intended to pass the night, but a plan 
had been laid to rob us, and we were obliged, on discovering it, to 
re-imbark before day-break, much rejoiced at having narrowly 
escaped the loss of our property and our lives. Pursuing our course 
among the many islands, with which this part of the coast is studded, 
we passed the beautiful and fertile island of Madeira, and, at noon, 
crossed two wide bays. A favourable breeze now, for the first time, 
sprung up, which lasted until we arrived at Zapitiva, and here 
ended our romantic canoe-voyage. 

I would strongly recommend to every traveller, pursuing a similar 
course, the expediency of providing himself with a soldier commis- 
sioned to attend him, and to protect his person and property against 
the evil-minded persons, who prowl about the coast in search of 
plunder, and greedily seek every opportunity of securing, by fraud 
or force, the property of defenceless passengers. We had more than 
once occasion to rue the neglect of this precaution. 

At Zapitiva, we met with excellent accommodations. The owner 
of the house at which we put up, furnished us with a plentiful sup- 
per offish, fowls, coffee, and excellent sweet-meats, which we relished 
the more from having for eight days subsisted wholly on fish. Our 
lodgings were tolerably comfortable, and were rendered more so by 
the earnestness with which every one in the family strove to please 



( 94 ) 



us. At sun-rise next morning, after diverting myself with shooting 
a few horned plovers on the beach, I took a survey of the rom tic 
scenery around. Here are a few poor houses, and some plantations 
of indigo, sugar, and pulse. The beach is lined with fine aloes, and 
presents an interesting view of several islets in front of the bay, the 
most conspicuous of which is Madeira, before-mentioned. In ano- 
ther direction is seen that of Isle Grande. Four leagues distant from 
Zapitiva is Santa Cruz, formerly the property of the Jesuits, and now 
the royal farm of the Prince Regent of Portugal, of which I shall 
have occasion, in the sequel, to speak more at large. 

After settling with our host, we hired mules to carry us to Rio de 
Janeiro, distant forty miles. Owing to the weight of our bag- 
gage, we travelled but slowly : this, however, we did not regret, 
as the fatigues of our coasting-voyage rendered us rather averse to 
violent exertion. Proceeding through a low sandy country, covered 
with wood, for about three leagues, we skirted the boundary of the 
Prince's farm, which encloses some of the finest and most fertile 
plains in South America, and gives employment to upward of fifteen 
hundred negroes. We soon afterwards reached the main road, 
which in general is very good, but the lands about it are little 
cleared, and seem almost destitute of cultivators. In the course of 
twenty miles, we saw only one house that deserved the name of a 
plantation ; the only dwellings by the way-side were miserable huts 
and dram-shops, exhibiting deplorable symptoms of sloth and po^- 
verty. Before sun-set we halted at a kind of inn, where our mules 
were turned out to grass, and a supper was provided for us of fowls, 
milk, and coffee. The house, though pleasantly situated on an emi- 
nence among orange-groves and coffee-trees, was miserably deficient 
in those conveniences which its exterior had announced. The room 
where we supped was lighted by a small poor lamp, (here being no 
candles,) and the floor was so uneven, that our table stood on only 
two of its four legs. Tired with this cheerless gloom, we ordered 
pur beds to be unpacked, and retired to rest. The want of candle- 



( 95 ) 



light is a serious inconvenience to travellers in all parts of Brazil, 
and no one ought to undertake a journey without an ample provi- 
sion of candles, with the necessary implements for using them. Snuf- 
fers are articles of luxury, very rarely to be met with, except as 
curiosities. I need not add that beds are an equally indispensable 
part of a traveller's equipage. 

We resumed our journey at an early hour next day, along an ex- 
cellent road in the middle of a valley, formed by lofty mountains. 
After travelling about three miles, we came to a house, called the 
Panedera (bake-house), which is reckoned half way between Zapitiva 
and the capital. From this place the road gradually becomes more 
enlivened by dwellings and plantations, (but many of the former are 
wretched hovels erected for the sale of bacon, corn, liquors, &c.) 
and by numbers of countrymen bringing produce from every part of 
the south-west, even from the far districts of Goyazes, Coritiva, 
Cuyaba, St. Paul's, and Mato G rosso. It is not uncommon to see 
eight hundred or a* thousand mules passing and repassing in the 
course of a day, besides numerous droves of fine cattle for the use 
of the city. Our heavy-laden and weary mules travelled so slowly, 
that we did not come within sight of Rio de Janeiro, until about 
three in the afternoon. On reaching the eminence, which com- 
manded the first prospect of this fine city, our joyful sensations 
banished every feeling of fatigue. One of the party, who had ad- 
vanced a few paces, rode back as fast as his mule could go, exclaim- 
ing, " the English flag." We hastened onward, and beheld one of 
the most welcome sights that ever greeted the eyes of a traveller, 
with a remembrance of his native country — a squadron of our men 
of war at anchor in the bay, which had recently escorted the court 
of Portugal to an asylum in their own dominions, beyond the reach 
of their foes. We no longer felt uneasy at the thought of entering 
a large city inhabited by strangers ; we knew that the name of Eng- 
lishman would be a passport among them, and we anticipated 
something of that delight which is connected with the near prospect 

9 



( 96 ) 



of home. I, who had for eighteen months lingered in exile, and 
beheld each setting sun close another day of almost hopeless capti- 
vity, enjoyed this evening scene with indescribable emotion ; it was 
here, that for the first time since my landing in South America, I 
had just reason to promise myself a night's repose in freedom, 
safety, and peace. 

We soon reached the suburbs, which are very large and pleasant, 
being agreeably interspersed with gardens and pleasure grounds. 
About five o'clock we halted in the vicinity of Campo St. Anna, at an 
inn, or rather hostelry for cattle, whence, having secured our bag- 
gage in the miserable stall allotted to us, we sallied forth in search 
of the friends who left us at St. Catherine's. Accustomed, as we long 
had been, to rude and solitary scenes, we were forcibly struck with 
the opulence of this city, displayed in its magnificent buildings and 
regular streets. While engaged in anxious enquiries after our friends, 
we accidentally met with one of them, who, with unspeakable joy, 
conducted us to the rest, and the evening was passed most agree- 
ably in relating over several encounters, and in asking and answering 
innumerable questions. Returning to our inn at midnight, we re- 
mained with our luggage until morning, when we carted it up to the 
house of our friends in Rua PiscadOres. 

During our journey from Zapitiva to Rio Janeiro, we had not 
much leisure for geological observation. The stratum, in the course 
of the route, is composed of primitive granite, like that before 
described. In some parts we observed large stones, approx- 
imating to basalt, and in other parts we found fine clay. Nearer to 
the capital, and particularly in the environs of St. Cristoval, the 
Prince's country-palace, the stratum has a gneiss-like appearance, 
and produces some fine specimens of feld-spar. In the precincts 
of the city, there is an extensive flat, covered with mangroves, and 
over-flowed by the tide. At the foot of the mountains which bound 
it, are quarries of granite, large blocks of which are raised for build= 
ing purposes, as well as for paving the streets of the city. 



( 97 ) 



CHAP. VII. 

Description of Rio de Janeiro. — Trade. — State of Society. — Visit to 
the Prince Regent's Farm at Santa Cruz. 

Tl IO DE JANEIRO has been so often described by former tra- 
veller-s, that, were I to confine myself to the supply of what they 
have omitted, or to the correction of their mis-statements, my task 
would be speedily performed, but, as I have uniformly chosen to 
write freely from my own observations rather than follow the track of 
others, I shall trespass on the reader with a more detailed account 
than he might perhaps require. It will, however, be recollected that 
the period at which I visited this capital being a political sera in the 
annals of Brazil, is sufficiently interesting to excuse if not to justify 
me in the attempt to improve upon descriptions of an earlier date, 
though at the risk of a little repetition. 

The finest view of the city is from the harbour, whence its lofty 
eminences crowned with convents, and the hills in its environs, inter- 
spersed with villas and gardens, have a rich and magnificent appear- 
ance. The royal palace skirts the beach, and is seen to great ad- 
vantage from the principal landing-place, which is within sixty yards 
of its doors. This palace, though small, is the residence of the 
Prince Regent and the royal family : the mint and the royal chapel 
form parts of the structure. Parallel with the beach runs the main 
street, consisting of noble buildings, called Rua de Dereito, from 
which the minor streets branch off at right angles, and are intersected 
by others at regular distances. 

Some idea of the extent of the city may be formed from the po- 
pulation, which, including the negroes, (its most numerous portion,) 

o 



( 98 ) 

is estimated at a hundred thousand souls : the dwellings are generally 
of one story only. 

The numerous convents and churches are well built, and rather 
handsome ; the cathedral, now nearly finished, is in a superior style 
of architecture. The streets were formerly incommoded by latticed 
balconies, which had a very heavy appearance and obstructed the 
circulation of the air, but they have been taken away by order of 
Government. The greatest nuisances now remaining are those 
which arise from the custom of persons of all ranks on horseback to 
ride on the foot-paths, and from the preposterous hanging of shop 
and house doors, which all open outward into the street, to the great 
annoyance of foot-passengers : I may also add the frequent pools of 
stagnant water which, from the lowness of the site, cannot without 
much labour be drained away, and which, through the heat of the 
weather, emit the most putrid exhalations. Water for the use of the 
city flows from the hills through aqueducts, and is distributed to 
several fountains in various public places. It is to be regretted that 
there are not more of these for the supply of the inhabitants, num- 
bers of whom live a mile distant from any of them, and are obliged 
to employ persons continually in carrying water : many of the poorer 
classes earn a living by selling it. The fountains in dry weather are 
frequently so crowded, that the carriers have to wait for hours before 
they can be supplied. The water is good, and, when kept in large 
jars, drinks cool and pleasant. The inns and public houses are 
almost destitute of accommodations, and so very uncomfortable that 
a stranger will not reside in them if he can find a friend to take him 
in. House-rent in general is equally high as in London, owing, it 
should seem, to the dearness of building materials and the high price 
of masonry. Timber in particular is unaccountably scarce, consider- 
ing the quantity which grows in almost every part of Brazil ; even 
fire-wood is dear. Provisions are in general plentiful, but not very 
choice in quality : the beef is very indifferent, and indeed bad ; the 
pork is better, and, if the feeding were properly attended to, might 



( 99 ) 



be rendered fine ; mutton is almost unknown, as the natives will not 
eat it*; the poultry of every description are excellent, but they are 
very dear. Pulse and vegetables of all kinds are very abundant, and 
the fish-market is not ill supplied. Turtles are frequently caught, as 
well as a great variety of fish ; here are abundance of very fine large 
prawns. The oysters and muscles, though not equal to ours, are 
very tolerable. 

Owing to its low situation, and the general filthiness of its streets, 
Rio de Janeiro cannot be called healthful. Improvements are now 
making which will in part remedy these evils ; but other causes tend 
to increase the insalubrity of the air, and to spread contagious dis- 
tempers, the principal of which are the large importations of negroes 
from Africa, who commonly land in a sickly state, the consequence 
of close confinement during a hot voyage. It is much to be regretted 
that the city was not originally built on the plan of those in the 
Netherlands, with canals for brigs and small vessels, which might 
then have been unloaded at the doors of the warehouses : such an 
improvement would have also greatly tended to the cleanliness and 
salubrity of the town. 

The police is by no means ill regulated ; and, from the attention 
which has been paid to it since the arrival of the court, there is every 
hope that it will be placed on a footing equally respectable with that 
of any European capital. The prisons are loathsome, and require 
the benevolent genius of a Howard to reform them altogether. One 
great step in favour of humanity has been gained : the inquisition 
has been abolished, and with it the spirit of persecution, so that no 
one can now be offended for his religious tenets, unless he openly in- 
sult the established religion. 



* By way of experiment, I had some killed, and it was acknowledged by those who tasted 
it to be excellent ; but some strange prejudice or other deters the inhabitants from intro- 
ducing it at their tables. 

o 2 



( wo ) 



This city is the chief mart of Brazil, and especially of the pro- 
vinces of Minas Geraes, St. Paul's, Goyazes, Cuyaba and Corritiva. 
The mioing districts, being most populous, require the greatest pro- 
portion of consumable goods, and in return send the most valu- 
able articles of commerce, hence innumerable troops of mules are 
continually travelling to and from those districts ; their com- 
mon burden is about three cwt. each, which they carry to the 
almost incredible distance of 1500 or 2000 miles. Their homeward 
freight consists chiefly of salt for the consumption of the cattle, and 
iron for the working of the mines. 

No colonial port in the world is so well situated for general com- 
merce as Rio de Janeiro. It enjoys, beyond any other, an equal con- 
venience of intercourse with Europe, America, Africa, the East 
Indies, and the South Sea islands, and seems formed by nature as a 
grand link to connect the trade of those great portions of the globe. 
Commanding also, as the capital of a rich and extensive territory, 
resources of immense amount and value, it seemed to require only 
the presence of an efficient government to give it political import- 
ance, and this advantage it has now gained by becoming the chosen 
residence of the court of Portugal. The benefits resulting from this 
great event had but just begun to display themselves at the period 
to which this narrative refers, and the commercial relations of Rio de* 
Janeiro, though considerably augmented, were still but in their germ. 
I shall proceed to state them according to the best information I 
was then able to procure. 

The imports hither from the River Plate, and from Rio Grande de 
St. Pedro, consist in immense quantities of dried beef, tallow, hides, 
and grain. Those from the United States are chiefly salt provisions, 
flour, household furniture, pitch, and tar. The North Americans 
generally send cargoes of these articles on speculation, and, as the 
market for them is fluctuating and not to be depended on, they fre- 
quently take them to other ports. Their provisions are commonly 



( 101 ) 



stmt to the Cape of Good Hope. They bring European merchan- 
dize, which they exchange for specie wherewith to trade to China* 
and also take in necessaries on their voyages to the South Seas. 

From the western coast of Africa, Rio de Janeiro imports wax, oil, 
sulphur, and some woods. The negro trade has been restricted to 
the kingdom of Angola by a decree of the Prince Regent, who 
has declared his intention of abolishing it altogether as soon as pos- 
sible. 

The trade to Mozambique is trivial ; but, since the capture of 
the Isle of France by the British has cleared that coast from French 
privateers, it may be expected to increase. It affords many valuable 
products, such as gold-dust, brought from the interior, ivory, of 
which the Prince monopolizes the largest sort, ebony and other 
fane woods, drugs, oil, excellent columbo-root, and an abundance 
of various gums, particularly of the gum meni. The whale-fisheries 
on the coast have proved a source of riches to many speculators. 

The intercourse of this port with India, in common with Mozam- 
bique, has been much annoyed by the privateers of the Isle of 
France, and will therefore, in all probability, flourish equally by their 
suppression. A voyage thither and back is performed with great 
expedition: one large ship of eight hundred tons sailed, loaded 
at Surat, and returned within the space of seven months. A voyage 
to China seldom occupies a longer period. The trade thither will no 
doubt be revived, and it is not improbable that this port may at no 
great distance of time become an entrepdt for India goods destined 
for Europe. 

Rio de Janeiro is conveniently situated for supplying a great 
variety of necessaries to the Cape of Good Hope and to New South 
Wales ; indeed, of late years, English manufactures have been sold 
here so cheap that it has been found more advantageous to ship 
them hence for those colonies than from home. Ships going on the 
South Sea whale-fishery touch here, and lay in large stocks of spi- 
rituous liquors, wine, sugar, coffee, tobacco, soap, and live stock, 

9 



( 102 ) 



The imports from the mother-country consist chiefly in wine and. 
oil. From Sweden some iron is occasionally brought : it is preferred 
to English iron for mules' shoes, on account of its greater ductility. 

The exports consist principally of cotton, sugar, rum, ship-tim- 
ber, various fine cabinet-woods, hides, tallow, indigo, and coarse 
cotton cloths, in immense quantities, for clothing the Peons in the 
provinces of the River Plate. Among the more precious articles of 
export may be enumerated gold, diamonds, topazes of various co- 
lours, amethysts, tourmalines (that are frequently sold for emeralds), 
chrysoberyls, aqua-marinas, and wrought jewelry. 

This market has been greatly overstocked with English manufac- 
tures, in consequence of the sanguine speculations to which our mer- 
chants were incited by the late emigration. The supply exceeded 
the demand in a tenfold degree, and the excess gave rise to auctions 
where goods were sold at unprecedentedly reduced prices. In pro- 
portion as English merchandize lowered, that of Brazil rose in value, 
and so great was the demand for it, owing to the numerous vessels 
waiting for cargoes, that within a year after the arrival of the Prince 
Regent, every article of produce was doubled. Gold quickly dis- 
appeared; for the monied Portugueze, perceiving the avidity and 
impolitic eagerness with which the English forced their goods upon 
them, cautiously withheld their specie, and, by the alternative of 
barter, got rid of their own produce at a very high price, and ob- 
tained our merchandize almost at their own valuation. The losing 
party in this unequal traffic, though they had chiefly to blame their 
own imprudence in engaging in it, were loud in their complaints and 
remonstrances against the Portuguese merchants. A treaty of com- 
merce was concluded, by which the duties on English, and indeed all 
foreign merchandize, which had been 25 per cent., were reduced to 15 
per cent, ad valorem. A judge was appointed to attend solely to the 
concerns of the English, and to see justice done them: he was intitled 
the Judge Conservador of the English nation. The person who now 
fills this important office is one of the most enlightened and upright of 



( 103 ) 



men ; his official conduct, of which I have seen much, has secured 
him the respect of all parties, and has done credit to the choice of 
the Prince Regent, confirmed by the approval of His Excellency 
Lord Strangford. Further to cultivate and extend the interests of 
commerce, His Royal Highness has established a Board of Trade, 
in which are some experienced and intelligent men, to whose consi- 
deration every particular case, and every new regulation, is referred. 
One of the members of this Board, Dr. Lisboa, has greatly distin- 
guished himself by his zeal for the English nation, displayed in 
various publications on commerce, particularly in one dated May 
1810, which contains a fund of solid argument on the principles laid 
down and acknowledged by our most celebrated statesmen and po- 
litical writers. It is to be hoped that the diffusion of views so liberal, 
under the auspices of ministers, will banish that narrow-minded jea- 
lousy with which certain opulent individuals of the Brazilian capital 
regard the English merchants, whom they stigmatize as intruders ; 
and that the general interests of commerce in this thriving colony 
will gain, through fair competition, what they have heretofore lost 
through overstocked markets. 

The business of the custom-house, although still shackled with 
many troublesome and tedious regulations, especially with regard to 
small articles, has been considerably simplified ; and, in all cases 
where a stranger finds himself at a loss how to proceed, he is sure to 
have every difficulty explained, and every obstacle removed, by ap- 
pealing to the judge who presides over this department. The libe- 
rality and disinterestedness of this excellent officer are the more ge- 
nerally felt and acknowledged, from the inconveniences with which 
his situation might enable him to embarrass the trade, if he were in- 
clined to a more rigorous execution of the laws. 

In mentioning the advantages which have resulted to the English 
merchants from the liberality of the persons in office, I ought not to 
omit stating that much has been effected through the exertions of the 
British minister, who, while pursuing that conciliatory and moderate 



( 104 ) 



line of conduct, which gained him the esteem of the Prince Regent, 
ever firmly upheld the interests of his nation, and in all deliberations 
concerning them reserved to himself the casting vote. With respect 
to individuals, it is true that he declined to be troubled on every 
trivial occasion, and scrupulously discountenanced every covert 
attempt at monopoly or peculation, from whatever quarter it came : 
but in great questions he acted with promptitude and decision ; nor 
was he averse to use his influence in favour of a private individual, 
when a candid and manly appeal was made to him. Considering the 
peculiar circumstances attending his embassy, and also the jarring 
interests he had to reconcile, Lord Strangford has conducted himself 
in a way highly honourable to his talents and character ; and in con- 
tinuing to merit the confidence of his own court, has secured that of 
the Prince Regent and all his ministers. The treaty of commerce 
lately concluded is a proof of the harmony which subsists between 
them, and may be regarded on our part as the most advantageous 
that, in the existing posture of affairs, could have been procured. 

The harbour is easy of entrance and egress, generally speaking, at 
all times, as there is a daily alternation of land and sea breeze, the 
former blowing until about noon, and the latter from that hour until 
sun-set. Ships find here every conveniency for repairing, heaving 
down, &c, but it is to be hoped that docks will soon be formed, 
which will render the latter troublesome and dangerous operation 
unnecessary. There is an anchorage-duty paid, which forms an item 
in the bill of port-charges. 

Of the state of society in Rio de Janeiro, what I have to observe 
differs little from the description of the Paulistas already given. The 
same habits and manners prevail at both places, allowing for some 
slight variation, caused by the greater influx of strangers to the 
capital. The Portugueze are in general rather punctilious and re- 
served in admitting a foreigner to their family parties ; but having 
once received him, they are open and hospitable. The ladies are 
affable and courteous to strangers, extremely fond of dress, but less 



( 105 ) 



proud than those of other nations. In their mixed assemblies the 
utmost gaiety prevails, and is seasoned by that finished politeness 
for which the Portugueze are generally distinguished. The conver- 
sation of the 'best-bred men, however, is more lively than instruc- 
tive ; for education is here at a low ebb, and comprehends a very 
limited course of literature and science. It is proper to add that, 
since the arrival of the court, measures have been adopted for effect- 
ing a thorough reform in the seminaries, and other institutions for 
public instruction ; and that the Prince Regent, in his solicitude for 
the good of his subjects, has zealously patronized every attempt to 
diffuse among them a taste for useful knowledge. Under his au- 
spices, the college of St. Joaquim has undergone considerable im- 
provement : a lectureship on chemistry has been instituted, to which 
our countryman, Dr. Gardner, has been nominated by His Royal 
Highness ; and it is to be hoped that from this appointment may be 
dated the introduction of experimental philosophy in that establish- 
ment. 

Resuming my narrative, I am bound in gratitude to state that the 
reception I met with here exceeded my most sanguine hopes, and far 
more so any individual pretensions on which I could ground them. 
I must attribute it to the letter of introduction to the Viceroy, with 
which the Portuguese ambassador in London honoured me on my 
departure thence, and which I presented to the ambassador's noble 
relative, the Conde de Linhares, minister for foreign affairs. This 
distinguished statesman shewed me every attention, and granted me 
every privilege I could ask, so that, through his kind condescension, 
all went well with me. I may state this without incurring the im- 
putation of vanity, since it is only one among the numerous proofs 
he has given of his disposition to serve the English by every means 
in his power. 

A few weeks after my arrival, I solicited permission of His Excel- 
lency the Conde. de Linhares to work an iron mine at Guaraceaba, 
representing at the same time the immense advantages which mighr 

p 



( 106 ) 



accrue to the state from such an experiment, by opening its own re- 
sources for the supply of that useful metal. He in part assented to the 
proposal, but expressed a wish that I should previously devote a few 
days to an inspection of the Prince's farm at Santa Cruz, and on my 
return make a report of the state in which I found it. While pre- 
paring for my journey, it was intimated to me as the Prince's par- 
ticular desire, that I should endeavour to establish a dairy on the 
principle of those in England, and direct the people in the manage- 
ment of it, to which I readily assented. Being provided with horses 
and a soldier to attend me, I set out on the journey, accompanied 
by a gentleman named Paroissien, whose amiable disposition and 
scientific pursuits rendered him a very useful companion. After 
about fifty miles hard riding, we arrived at the farm about six in the 
evening, much fatigued. The accommodations we met with, fully 
explained to me the motive of His Royal Highness's minister in en- 
quiring into the state of his domain. Having presented my official 
letters, I was obliged to wait until ten o'clock before the slightest 
refreshment could be procured ; not a dish of coffee was to be had ; 
the only fare set before us was some lean beef half-boiled, certainly 
the worst I had ever tasted in Brazil. The mulatto who attended us 
engaged to have breakfast ready by seven next morning; we were in 
readiness at the hour, and though told it was coming immediately, 
we waited three hours, when just as we were ordering out the horses 
to Rio to avoid being famished, the repast was announced, with an 
excuse that it could not come sooner, because no milk could be pro- 
cured. 

I then took a survey of the establishment and rode over the 
grounds. The house, I was informed, was once a convent of Jesuits, 
who possessed also the extensive tract of land attached to it, which 
they managed much better than their successors, if we may judge 
by the remains of their undertakings. The edifice is neither large 
nor grand : it is built in a quadrangular form, with an open court in 
the centre, and galleries inside to the .first and second floors. The 

9 



( 107 ) 



apartments are thirty-six in number, very small, having been adapted 
to the use of the brotherhood, and since their departure only in a 
slight degree altered and decorated for the reception of the Royal 
Family, as their summer residence. In front of the house, to the 
southward, extends one of the finest plains in the world, two leagues 
square, watered by two rivers navigable for small craft, and bounded 
by fine bold rocky scenery, embellished in many parts with noble 
forest trees. This plain is clothed with the richest pasture, and sup- 
ports from seven to eight thousand head of cattle. A considerable 
part of it lies low, and abounds with bogs which might easily be laid 
dry and rendered cultivable by proper drainage. The park occupies 
in its entire extent upwards of one hundred square miles, a territory 
almost as large as some of the late principalities of Italy, and capable, 
by its proximity and connection with the capital both by land and 
water, of being rendered one of the most productive and populous 
in Brazil. Under the present system of management it is in a pro- 
gressive state of deterioration ; two small corners, the best of the 
land, one about half a league square and the other more than a 
league square, have been already, through disingenuous artifices, 
sold off, and the rest may in no long time be sacrificed to men whose 
cupidity stimulates them to depreciate its value, unless proper means 
are used to thwart their nefarious designs. 

The negroes on this estate, including all descriptions, amount to 
about fifteen hundred in number. They are in general a very excel- 
lent class of men, tractable and gentle in their dispositions, and by 
no means deficient in intellect. Great pains have been taken to en- 
lighten them, they are regularly instructed in the principles of the 
Christian faith, and have prayers publicly read to them morning and 
evening, at the commencement and close of their day's labour. 
Plots of ground, at their own choice, are assigned to each, and two 
days in the week, besides the incidental holidays, are allowed them 
to raise and cultivate produce for their own subsistence ; the rest of 
their time and labour is devoted to the service of His Highness. 

p % 



( 108 ) 



The system of management, however, is so bad, that they are half- 
starved, almost destitute of clothing, and most miserably lodged; 
their average earnings do not amount to a penny per day each. A 
reform in the establishment might have been easily effected on the 
arrival of the Prince Regent, but it will now be very difficult, as 
the abuses have been tacitly sanctioned by the indifference of those 
whose duty and interest it was to correct them. In this extent of 
fine ground scarcely an inclosure is made ; the cultivated lands are 
full of weeds, and the coffee-plantations are little better than a mere 
coppice-wood, in which the wild shrubs grow higher than the coffee- 
trees. The cattle are most deplorably neglected, and there is not 
upon the whole premises a horse fit for the meanest beggar to ride. 
Such was the state in which I found this rich and extensive district, 
which seems to have been destined by nature for the introduction of 
improvements that might produce, through the influence of high 
example, an entire change in the agricultural system of Brazil. 

A short time after I had taken up my residence at Santa Cruz the 
Prince came down, and on the day succeeding his arrival honoured 
me with a visit, after which I frequently rode out with His Royal 
Highness* He one day did me the honour to express a wish that I 
would undertake to govern the farm ; this proposal I begged leave 
to decline on the ground of my inability to render such an employ 
compatible with my other concerns, suggesting at the same time the 
superior service 1 could render by working the iron mine. Notwith* 
standing this, the Prince, on the day following, gave me a paper, 
containing an offer of the whole direction of the estate and stating 
the terms. The repetition of the proposal not a little embarrassed 
me ; I was aware that, by refusing, I might probably debar myself 
from the prospect of any future favour, yet I anticipated enough or 
difficulty in the undertaking to make me decline it at all events. 
This dilemma occasioned me much uneasiness, and in order to re- 
move it I applied to Sir Sidney Smith, who was then on a visit to 
Santa Cruz, requesting him to explain to His Royal Highness the 



( 109 ) 



circumstances which rendered it impossible for me to settle in Bra- 
zil, and to tender him the offer of my services during my stay. 
After some further deliberation, however, I was induced to accept 
the appointment, by way of trial, for a few months, under the ex- 
press stipulation that I should act without control. On entering 
upon my charge I began by making such new arrangements as ap- 
peared conducive to the end for which I was appointed, but I soon 
perceived that instead of being principal intendant, I had a superior, 
who held me accountable to him for my proceedings, and manifested 
a fixed determination to thwart them, as innovations on the 
established course of things. But this was not the only incon- 
venience ; it was expected that I should purchase whatever was 
wanted on my own credit ; but I quickly discovered, that instead of 
being reimbursed, according to agreement, I was trifled with and at 
length in part defrauded. The person to whom I allude was one of 
the managers of the Prince's household ; he had conceived a rooted 
hatred against the English, and could not bear that one of that 
nation should interfere in a concern over which he claimed autho- 
rity, and hold a situation where real services might induce a com- 
parison unfavourable to those specious ones whicji he contented 
himself with rendering. 1 will not detail the petty artifices and 
mean indirect insults which this man employed, to disgust me with 
the situation, when he found I would not submit to be his servile 
drudge ; suffice it to say that, perceiving no chance of obtaining that 
discretionary power, which alone could enable me to be essentially 
useful, I peremptorily refused to act any longer. Alarmed at this 
determination, he at first strove to overawe and then conciliate me, 
but I had seen too much of his conduct to be duped by this stra- 
tagem, or to suppose that any cordiality could in future subsist 
between us. Imagining himself armed with Royal power, he at- 
tempted to play the tyrant, but the reception he met with quickly 
forced him to resume his natural character, that of a cringing syco- 
phant. I did not hesitate to send in my resignation, and he had 



( no ) 



the mortification to find that the means he had employed to em- 
barrass and enslave me, restored me to liberty. 

In the letter which announced my determination to give up the 
employ, I thought proper to omit stating to His Excellency Don Ro- 
drigo the reasons that led me to this step,. Had that nobleman been 
apprised of the disagreeable circumstances in which I was placed, 
he would, I am confident, have done his utmost to remove them, 
but I deemed it beneath me to remonstrate, seeing that while this 
man remained I was to be considered as serving the Prince's servant 
and not the Prince. A condition so degrading must ever deter any 
Englishman from undertaking to execute the excellent and en- 
lightened plans which His Royal Highnesses ministers have projected, 
for improving the agriculture of Santa Cruz ; for who would submit 
to the dictates of an underling, whose arrogance and obstinacy are 
continually interrupting and frustrating those plans? 

On my return to Rio de Janeiro, the Prince sent for me, and de- 
sired me again and again to return to Santa Cruz ; I contented my- 
self with a simple excuse ; for that was not a time, nor was I in a 
place to enter into explanations. It is well known, that a system 
of intrigue prevails near His Royal Highness's person, which often 
tends to counteract representations on matteis of the greatest im- 
portance. 



( in y 



CHAP. VIII. 
Journey to Canta Gallo. 

gOME time after my return from Santa Cruz, a circumstance of 
a singular nature took place, which occasioned me to undertake 
•a journey to a district called Canta Gallo, distant about forty 
leagues from the capital, and one of the latest discovered in this 
part of Brazil. Two men reported that they had there found a 
mine of silver, and brought to the mint a quantity of earthy matter 
reduced to powder, from which was smelted a small ingot of that 
metal. This report being officially laid before His Excellency Don 
Rodrigo, I was solicited to go to Canta Gallo and investigate the busi- 
ness on the spot, the two men being ordered to meet me there. 
Before I proceed to relate the result of my inquiry, I shall briefly 
describe whatever I observed worthy of note in the course of the 
journey. 

Being provided with a passport, and also a sketch of the route, 
taken from a MS. map in the archives, I departed from Rio on the 
TOth of April J 809, accompanied by Dr. Gardner, the gentleman 
already mentioned as lecturer on chemistry at the college of St. Joa- 
quim. Having to pass to the bottom of the harbour, towards the 
north, we embarked in a small vessel, and being favoured with a 
strong sea breeze, ran down to the entrance of the fine river Mac- 
cacu, which we reached after a five hours' sail. The wind then 
dying, our boatmen took to their oars, and proceeding up the river we 
reached a house called Villa Nova, where numbers of market-boats 
for Rio were waiting for the land-wind and the turn of the tide. 
After taking some refreshment here, we rowed onward until the river 
became so narrow that the vessel frequently touched the bank on 



( 112 ) 



each side, and the men were obliged to push her along with poles. 
At day-break we reached Porto dos Caxhes, a place of great resort 
from the interior, being the station where the mules discharge their 
loads of produce from the many plantations in the neighbourhood. 
The town consists of several poor houses, and of stores where goods 
are deposited for embarkation. The stratum hereabouts is primitive 
granite, covered with fine strong clay. Leaving this place, we pro- 
ceeded for some distance and came to a large swamp, which we 
navigated in a canoe, with very little difficulty, and shortly after- 
wards arrived at the village of Maccacu. It stands on a small 
eminence in the midst of a fine plain, watered by a considerable 
stream, over which there are two good bridges. Though almost at 
the base of the chain of mountains that forms a barrier along the 
coast, the neighbourhood affords some fine situations ; the land in 
general consists of a strong clay, but appears much worn out. The 
commander, Colonel Jose, to whom I introduced myself, gave me a 
very polite reception, as did also the brethren of the convent, to whom 
I paid a visit. I passed the night at the house of the Escrivano, a 
worthy gentleman, whose hospitality I still remember with peculiar 
gratitude, because it seemed to proceed, not from a cold sense of 
duty, but from the impulse of a warm and generous heart. 

On the following day, being accommodated by the colonel with a 
horse and guide, I proceeded along the winding banks of the river, 
which in many places present most beautiful views. Here was more 
cultivated land than I expected to see ; but the sugar-plantations, 
and, in general, the low pasture-grounds, are quite neglected. We 
passed several farms belonging to convents, which, from their appa- 
rent condition, and the accounts we received, do little more than 
maintain the negroes and incumbents upon them. There was rarely 
a milch cow to be met with ; pigs and poultry were equally scarce. 
The population of these fine valleys is deplorably thin and poor ; 
there was a general sickliness in the looks of the women and children 
we met with, which may be imputed to their miserable diet and 



( US ) 



inactive life. I ought to state that the manners of the people here 
are mild and gentle ; we were every where treated with civility, and 
all our enquiries were answered with the most friendly marks of 
respect and attention. 

The air, as we drew nearer the mountains, was fresh and indeed 
cold. Towards evening we arrived at a farm belonging to a con- 
vent of nuns in Rio de Janeiro, where we were kindly accommodated 
for the night. This place is most agreeably situated, and might, 
under skilful and industrious management, be rendered a paradise. 
It has excellent clay ; fine timber ; a good fall of water, which 
forms a beautiful rivulet, and runs into a navigable river within one 
hundred yards of the house; a fine extent of arable land, and a still 
finer of pasture, which peculiarly qualifies it for dairy farming. It 
is distant only one day's journey from Port Caxhes, whence there is 
a navigable communication with the metropolis. What a scene for 
an enterprising agriculturist! At present all is neglected : the house, 
the out-buildings, and other conveniences are in a state of decay, 
and the people who manage the land appear, in common with the 
animals that feed upon it, to be half famished. 

The next morning we proceeded eastward, and crossing the stream, 
which was at least sixty yards broad and full three feet deep, rode 
along the farther margin, which is rather more elevated, and pre- 
sents a view of some fine plains, stretching from thence to the base 
of the mountains. Journeying in that direction we reached the 
fine plantation of Captain Ferrera, who received us very politely, 
and shewed us every attention. This place, bounded by the alpine 
ridge behind it, is the extreme point to which the river Maccacu is 
navigable. It is six or seven leagues from the village of that name. 
The estate maintains about one hundred negroes, who are chiefly 
employed in raising sugar, cotton, and coffee ; but to me the situa- 
tion appeared much better calculated for growing grain and feeding 
cattle, as the weather is at times cold, the evenings are fre- 
quently attended with heavy dews, and owing to the proximity of 



( 114 ) 



the mountains, here are frequent rains, accompanied by thunder 
and lightning. Numbers of fine springs burst forth from various 
parts of the hills, and form rivulets with falls, which, as here is 
plenty of fine timber, afford every means for working machinery. 
The owner lives in opulence, and is so humane and liberal to his 
people, that they seem to revere him as a father. We were much 
pleased with the air of domestic comfort and contented industry, 
which we observed among them on visiting their dwellings in the 
evening. Some of the negro-children were at play ; others of more 
advanced age were assisting the women to pick cotton ; and the men 
were scraping and preparing mandioca. Their cheerfulness was not 
at all interrupted by our approach, nor did they betray any uneasy 
feeling of constraint in the presence of their superiors. In lieu of 
candles, which are seldom to be met with but in the capital, they 
burn oil, extracted from the bean of the palm, or from a small spe- 
cies of ground-nut, here called meni. 

About noon, on the following day, horses being provided, and a 
soldier appointed for our guide, we left the fazenda, accompanied 
by its hospitable owner, Captain Ferrera, who conducted us half a 
league on our way. The river, along which we passed in an easterly 
direction, bursts through vast masses of rock with great force, and 
in some parts forms considerable falls. The Captain, ere we parted, 
led me to a water-course, in which Were found pieces of granite 
covered with manganese in a botryoidal form. After crossing the 
river twice, we arrived at what is called the first register, or search- 
ing-house, distant about two miles from the fazenda. This station 
is guarded by a corporal and a private soldier, who are charged 
with the receipt of various tolls, and are empowered to search pas- 
sengers, in order to prevent the smuggling of gold-dust. After 
shewing my passport, I took leave of Captain Ferrera, who made 
me promise to pay him a longer visit on my return. 

We had been warned of the badness of the roads, and were by 
no means agreeably deceived in them, for we were nearly four hours 



( 115 ) 



in going the next six miles. At the close of day, after a laborious 
and dangerous passage through abrupt ravines, and along the sides 
of steep hills, our guide announced that we were in sight of the 
second register, where it was proposed that we should pass the night. 
On arriving we found it a most miserable place, inhabited by five or 
six soldiers under the command of a serjeant. This good man gave 
us a hearty welcome, and with the assistance of his comrades, cooked 
us a supper of fowls, and regaled us with whatever else their scanty 
store afforded. We were not without, music to our repast, for the 
house is built on the edge of a roaring torrent, which, bursting through 
a ravine, has washed away every thing except some huge masses 
of rock. A bit of ground, about ten yards square, is all the garden 
these poor people have, and even this is much neglected, for the 
guards here are so often changed, that no one thinks of adding to 
the comforts and conveniences of an abode, which others are to 
enjoy. 

At day-break, we found that our mules had strayed into a wood 
adjoining, but as the road was stopped, we were under no apprehen- 
sion of losing them, for the thickets on each side were impervious. 
This occurrence gave me an opportunity of seeing more of these 
remote regions, and certainly the imagination of Salvator Rosa him- 
self never pictured so rude a solitude. On one side rose the great 
barrier of mountains, which we had yet to cross, covered to their 
summits with trees and underwood, without the smallest trace of 
cultivation ; on the other lay the broken country, between this ridge 
and the plain, presenting the same wild features of sylvan scenery. 
The miserable hut, at which we lodged, partook of the savage cha- 
racter of the neighbourhood, and seemed formed for the abode of 
men cut off from all intercourse with their fellows. On our return we 
were provided with a breakfast of coffee and eggs ; as to milk, there 
was no possibility of procuring any; a cow would have been considered 
here as an incumbrance, nor would any one of the six idle soldiers 

Q 2 



( "6 ) 



have given himself the trouble of milking her, though they all had 
been dying of hunger. 

On resuming our journey, we entered on a road still more steep 
and rugged than that which we had passed. We were often obliged 
to dismount and lead our mules up almost perpendicular passes, and 
along fearful declivities. In some places, the thick foliage of the 
trees, and that of the underwood, which grew higher than our heads, 
sheltered us from the sun, and indeed scarcely admitted the light. 
Not a bird did we see, nor the trace of any living thing, except 
some wild hogs. We passed several bare granite rocks of a gneiss- 
like formation. 

In journeying to the next station, we observed nothing worthy of 
note except a small saw-mill, worked by an overshot wheel, of very 
clumsy construction. The frame, which contains a single saw of 
very thick iron, moves in a perpendicular direction ; at every 
stroke, a boy brings the timber up, by pulling a cord attached to a 
crank that moves the cylinder on which it rests. How readily, 
thought I, would the meanest Russian peasant improve this machine ! 

We proceeded on our way up an ascent so precipitous, that 
we were obliged to walk more than ride ; after two hours toiling 
along the side of a granite mountain, in which we observed some 
beds of fine clay, we reached the summit, from whence we saw the 
bay of Rio de Janeiro, the sugar-loaf mountain, and the city itself, 
to all appearance not more than four or five leagues distant from us, 
though, in reality, more than twenty. At this elevation, which we 
may state to be at four or five thousand feet above the level of the 
sea, the air was sharp and keen ; the thermometer stood at 58°. Con- 
tinuing in a north-easterly direction, we passed two poor solitary 
farms, and entered upon a range of scenery tremendously grand, 
composed of bare abrupt conical mountains, with immense water- 
falls in every direction. At the close of day, we arrived at a farm- 
house, called Fazenda do Moro Quemado, the manager of which 

9 



( 117 ) 



received us hospitably, and accommodated us for the night. The 
weather was so cold, that a double supply of bed-clothes scarcely 
produced sufficient warmth ; in the morning the thermometer was 
at 48° Fahrenheit. After the heavy dew cleared away, we took a 
view of the grounds, in company with the manager ; they ap- 
peared well-suited for a grazing-farm, but the temperature of the 
atmosphere is too severe for growing the common produce of the 
country; particularly cotton, coffee and bananas, which are frequently 
blasted. I was informed that some wheat has been grown here, 
though the people are quite unacquainted with the European me- 
thod of farming. Indian corn, for the feed of hogs, is the staple 
article. This plantation is infested by ounces, which at times prey 
upon young cattle ; the manager, who is a great hunter, keeps 
dogs, though of a poor race, for the express purpose of destroying 
them, which is thus practised: — When the carcase of a worried ani- 
mal has been found, or when an ounce has been seen prowling 
about, the news is soon proclaimed among the neighbours, two or 
three of whom take fire arms loaded with heavy slugs, and go out 
with the dogs in quest of the animal, who generally lurks in some 
thicket, near the carcase he has killed, and leaves so strong a scent, 
that the dogs soon find. When disturbed he retreats to his den, if 
he has one, the dogs never attempting to fasten on him, or even to 
face him, but, on the contrar} 7 , endeavouring to get out of his way, 
which is not difficult, as the ounce is heavy and slow of motion. 
If he caves, the sport is at an end, and the hunters make up the 
entrance ; but he more commonly has recourse to a large tree, 
which he climbs with great facility ; here his fate is generally de- 
cided, for the hunters get near enough to take a steady aim, and 
seldom fail to bring him down, one of them reserving his fire to dis- 
patch him, if required, after he has fallen. It generally happens, 
that one or two of the dogs are killed in coming too near, for even 
in his dying struggles, a single stroke of his paw proves mortal. 
The skin is carried home as a trophy, and the neighbours meet 
and congratulate each other on the occasion. 



( 118 ) 



This farm, in the hands of an experienced and skilful agriculturist, 
might be managed so as to produce amazing returns. Its soil is wet, 
adapted to the growth, not only of Indian corn, but of wheat, barley, 
potatoes, &c. and it is so well irrigated, by numerous mountain 
streams, that the pastures are always luxuriant. Here are fine 
falls of water, and abundance of excellent timber, so that corn-mills 
might be erected at little more expence than what would arise from 
the purchase of mill-stones. Connected with the nun's farm below, 
this establishment might be rendered one of the most complete and 
advantageous in Brazil. 

Leaving Moro Quemado at noon, and descending on the other 
side of the ridge of mountains, we passed through an unequal tract, 
formed of hills and ravines. Onward the land appeared finer, and 
the timber of a superior growth, but there were few cultivated 
spots, and not many houses. The first extensive fazenda we 
reached was that of Manuel Jose Pereira, a native of the Azores, 
who managed his agricultural concerns much better than the other 
farmers whom we visited. We were shewn a large field of Indian 
corn, ready for cutting ; the quantity that had been sown was about 
eleven fanegas, or bushels, and the produce was estimated at fifteen 
hundred bushels, about one hundred and fifty for one. This was an 
ordinary crop ; in good years the harvest yields two hundred for one. 
The corn, as before stated, is chiefly consumed in the fattening of 
pigs ; the quantity requisite for this purpose is six or seven bushels 
each, and the time, ten or twelve weeks. The curing of bacon is 
performed by cutting all the lean from the flitches, and sprinkling 
them with a very little salt. This food has the peculiar effect of 
giving greater solidity to the fat, which of itself is not liable to pu- 
trefaction. 

Though the owner of this farm has occupied it not more than five 
years, and has had only the assistance of his two sons, and six 
negroes, he has brought it into a very fair state of cultivation. In 
his coffee plantation we observed five thousand trees in full bearing, 
and the rest of his grounds were in an equally prosperous condition. 



( 119 ) 



His expences, indeed, are light, and the only difficulties he has had 
to contend with, have been the bad roads, which are now much 
amended. The example of this man, it is to be hoped, will stimu- 
late the emulation of his neighbours ; for it has fully shewn the 
unbounded liberality with which nature here crowns the labours of 
the agriculturist. 

On our way hence to the place of our destination, we passed 
through some forests of fine full-grown trees ; one which had fallen, 
I had the curiosity to measure ; it was full seventy-six inches in dia- 
meter, at the thick end, and above twenty-five yards in length. 
Such a piece of timber I had never before seen. Within about 
three miles from Canta Gallo, we arrived at an excellent farm be- 
longing to the Senhor Tenente, or treasurer of the district, who 
treated us very hospitably, and invited us to visit him on our return. 
Our reception at Canta Gallo was highly gratifying ; the Governor, 
and all the principal inhabitants, overjoyed to see Englishmen in these 
remote parts, treated us with great cordiality and friendship ; a din- 
ner was provided, at which they testified to us the great respect 
they entertained for our nation, as being the great ally of a Prince 
whom they adored. 



( 1QQ > 



CHAP. IX. 

Description of Canta Gallo. — Of the Gold-washing of Santa Rita. 
— Account of the supposed Silver-Mine. 

^JANTA GALLO, though so near the seat of government, was 
not known until about twenty years ago. It is situated in the 
midst of a fine well-wooded country, abounding in springs, and in- 
tersected by narrow valleys and ravines. The bottoms of some of 
these ravines formerly contained gold, which was accidentally dis- 
covered by some grimperos * from Minas Geraes, in the course of 
their searches about the great river Paraiba, and the Rio Pumba. 
The richness of these beds of gold, and the fertility of the circum- 
jacent country, attracted numbers of adventurers, who placed them- 
selves under the direction of an able chieftain, named* Mao de 
Luva, on account of his having lost one hand, and his wearing a 
stuffed glove in its place. The band soon amounted to two or three 
hundred persons, who washed every part in the neighbourhood 
worth washing, before they were discovered. Being very determined 
men, they lived free of control, and bade defiance to the laws. It 
was not until about three years after their first settlement, that the 
existing government was apprised of them ; when, alarmed at the 
report of their numbers, which was doubtless exaggerated, they sent 
out spies to discover their rendezvous. This, after much time and 
great difficulty, was effected ; the spies, in wandering through the 
solitary woods and fastnesses in the neighbourhood, were attracted 



* A name given to those persons who go about the country seeking gold-washings, and 
do not give notice, or solicit a grant when they discover any. They are considered and 
treated as smugglers. 



( 121 ) 



toward the place, by the crowing of a cock : — hence the name of 
Canta Gallo, which was subsequently given to it. They introduced 
themselves as smugglers, who wished to belong to the fraternity, and 
after living there some time, found means to give information to 
government, at Rio de Janeiro, who issued proclamations, offering 
pardon if the whole body would surrender. This measure was inef- 
fectual ; the grimperos were well provided with fire-arms, and de- 
termined to defend themselves as long as any gold could be found. 
In a year or two afterwards, the washings began to fail, and thus 
the great bond of interest which united them being loosened, some 
deserted the place, and the rest became less vigilant in taking mea- 
sures for their defence. The government seized this favourable 
opportunity of reducing them ; a considerable force was assembled 
in the vicinity, with orders to make an attack at a certain fixed day, 
which was known to be celebrated by the grimperos as a festival in 
honour of some saint. At the expected time, while they were en- 
gaged at a great banqueting, and too much occupied with their 
wine to think of their arms, which had been laid aside, (the flints 
having been secretly taken out,) about a hundred soldiers rushed 
in among them ; those who were sober enough flew to their arms, ex- 
claiming, " We are sold ! we are betrayed ! treason ! treason !" The 
contest was short ; the soldiers seized the ringleaders, who were either 
sent to Africa, or imprisoned for life ; of the rest, some were taken 
prisoners, others fled, but were pursued for years afterwards, and a 
few fell in the attack. 

The Government, having thus become masters of this territory, and 
imagining it to be as rich in gold as Avhen the grimperos first settled 
there, issued many injudicious regulations, oppressed the natives 
beyond example, built registers in various parts, to prevent contra- 
band, and filled the whole neighbourhood with guards. The nume- 
rous settlers, whom the supposed richness of the place afterwards 
attracted, soon found that the cream had been skimmed by the 
smugglers, and by degrees turned their attention to agriculture, a 

R 



( 122 ) 



less precarious subsistence than mining. So little gold is at present 
found, that His Highness's fifth scarcely pays the officers and sol- 
diers appointed to receive it. There are some situations alike fa- 
vourable to mining and farming ; with a small capital, a man may 
here turn both pursuits to account, if he can bring himself to con- 
form to the customs of the place. The land is strong and good ; its 
various inequalities present spots adapted to the growth of almost 
every description of produce. In the valleys, and on the sides of 
the mountains, the soil, in some parts, consists of strong clay, but 
more generally of a frne, rich, vegetable mould. The rock, or solid 
stratum, which appears at various depths below it, is granite, com- 
posed of feld-spar, hornblende, quartz, mica, and frequently gar- 
nets. When found in a decomposing state, it is denominated 
pizarra. No metallic substances, except gold and oxides of iron, 
appear ; the former, which is found in the interjacent bed of cas- 
calhao, exists only in grains ; I examined a considerable quantity, 
but could not discover a single particle in a crystallized state. 

The country appears to be very poorly stocked with cattle ; no 
cows are kept for milking, nor is any attention here paid to the 
production of an article of diet, so essential to the subsistence of a 
poor family ; a few goats are kept, and the only milk used is that 
which they yield. The common food of the inhabitants is as fol- 
lows ; — for breakfast, a kind of kidney beans, called feijones, boiled, 
and afterwards mixed with the flour of Indian corn; for dinner, 
feijones boiled with a little fat pork and some cabbage leaves, and 
a sort of pudding, made by pouring the water from the pork on a 
plate of the farinha, which is eaten with the hand, and much 
relished ; for supper, some poor vegetables, also boiled up with fat 
pork. Fowls, which are bred here in great numbers, are generally 
cut to pieces and stewed for table. Wine is rarely used, even 
among the higher ranks, but here are fruits in great abundance, par- 
ticularly bananas and oranges, which form a considerable part of 
the general diet. 



( 123 ) 



Very little sugar is grown here : the principal articles of produce 
sent to the capital are corn, bacon, fowls, jaracanda, or rose-wood, 
and ipecacuanha. In many parts of the neighbourhood is found a 
tree, the bark of which has been successfully used as a substitute for 
the quinquina of Peru. 

In one of the frequent excursions I took in the neighbourhood of 
Canta Gallo, previous to my journey to the reputed silver mine, I 
obtained some information respecting the half-civilized aborigines of 
the district from a man who employs himself in procuring ipecacu- 
anha, and is a kind of chief among them. They reside in the woods, 
in a most miserable condition ; their dwellings, some of which I saw, 
are formed of boughs of trees, bent so as to hold a thatch or tiling of 
palm-leaves ; their beds are made of dry grass. Having little idea of 
planting or tillage, they depend for subsistence almost entirely on 
their bows and arrows, and on the roots and wild fruits which they 
casually find in the woods. The chief above-mentioned brought 
about fifty of these Indians to pay me a visit, which was not a little 
gratifying to me, as it afforded an opportunity of examining their 
features, and of conversing with the few among them who could 
speak a little of the Portugueze language. The dress of the men 
consisted of a waistcoat and a pair of drawers ; that of the women, 
of a chemise and petticoat, with a handkerchief tied round the head, 
after the fashion of the Portugueze females. They bore the general 
characteristics of their race, the copper-coloured skin, short and 
round visage, broad nose, lank black hair, and regular stature, in- 
clining to the short and broad-set. Being desirous to see a proof of 
their skill and precision in shooting, of which I had heard much, I 
placed an orange at thirty yards distance, which was pierced by an 
arrow from every one who drew his bow at it. I next pointed out a 
banana-tree, about eight inches in circumference, at a distance of 
forty yards ; not a si: gle arrow missed its aim, though they all shot 
at an elevated range. Interested by these proofs of their archery, I 
went with some of them into a wood to see them shoot at birds ; 

r 2 



( 124 ) 



though there were very few, they discovered them far more quickly 
than I could ; and, cautiously creeping along until they were within 
bow-shot, never failed to bring down their game. The stillness and 
expedition with which they penetrated the thickets, and passed 
through the brush-wood, were truly surprising ; nor could any thing 
have afforded me a more satisfactory idea of their peculiar way of 
life. Their bows are made of the tough fibrous wood of the Iri, six 
or seven feet long, and very stout ; their arrows are full six feet long, 
and near an inch in diameter, pointed with a piece of cane cut to a 
feather edge, or with a bone, but of late more frequently with iron. 
They are loathsome in their persons, and in their habits but one 
remove from the anthropophagi ; for they will devour almost anv 
animal in the coarsest manner, for instance, a bird unplucked, half- 
roasted, with the entrails remaining*. They are not of a shy or 
morose character, but have a great aversion to labour, and cannot be 
brought to submit to any regular employment. Rarely is an Indian 
to be found serving as a domestic, or working for hire, and to this 
circumstance may be ascribed the low state of agriculture in the 
district ; for as the farmers, when they begin the world, have seldom 
funds sufficient to purchase negroes at Rio, their operations are for a 
long time very confined, and frequently languish for want of hands. 
What benefits would result to the state, and how much would the 
general cause of humanity be served, if these Indians were civilized 
and domesticated ! A tribe of idle and unsettled savages would be 
converted into useful and productive labourers ; the whole face of 
the district would be improved ; the roads which at present connect 



* Ere they departed, I saw an instance of that dangerous excess to which the pas- 
sions of savages are liable when once excited ; for, on presenting a few bottles of 
liquor, there was a general strife for them, and the person, man or woman, who first 
obtained one, would have drank the whole of its contents, had it not been forcibly taken 
away. It is very unsafe to give them ardent spirits, for when intoxicated it is necessary to 
confine them. If preference is given to one, the rest are insolent and unruly until they 
obtain the same marks of favour. 



( 125 ) 



it with the capital would be cleared of the thousand inconveniences 
which now encumber them, and new ones* would be opened for the 
more expeditious conveyance of its produce. 

During my stay at Canta Gallo I undertook a journey to the 
gold-washing at Santa Rita, distant about five leagues, in a north- 
east direction. After passing the uneven country in the immediate 
neighbourhood of the village, we arrived at the Rio Negro, a con- 
siderable stream formed by many rivulets, which empties itself into 
the Paraiba ; on crossing it-j-, we entered upon a fine open country, 
the fertility of which was evident from the luxuriant growth of the 
tobacco and other plants : but it lay in a state of almost total 
neglect, and the families thinly scattered upon it appeared in the 
lowest condition of indolence and misery. We proceeded a league 
farther, through a tract entirely destitute of inhabitants, and arrived 
about two in the afternoon at Santa Rita. The proprietor of the 
works received us very kindly, and conducted us through them 
while dinner was preparing. The washing is in a deep ravine, 
bounded at one end by an abrupt hill, and open at the other to the 
plain. The vegetable earth appeared extremely rich, being clothed 
with luxuriant verdure, and the hills on each hand covered with trees 
of all sizes. The stratum of cascalhao, which lies under a bed of soil 
four or five feet deep, is very thin and uneven, being no where more 
than two feet thick, and in many parts not more than seven or eight 
inches. The incumbent soil is removed at great labour and expence, 
being dug out and carried away in bowls ; and the cascalhao is con- 
veyed with great care to a convenient place for water, where it is 
washed by the most expert among the miners, in a way similar to 



* I was well informed that a few hundred pounds, judiciously employed, would de- 
fray the expence of making a good road from Canta Gallo to Porto dos Cashes, which 
loaded mules might travel in two days. 

f The mode of crossing a river with horses or mules in these parts, is to tie one to 
the canoe, and drive him into the water; the rest follow. 



( 126 ) 



that practised at the mines of Jaragua. The proportion of gold pro- 
duced was moderate : I was informed that it paid the master at the 
rate of from fourteen pence to two shillings per day for each negro, 
which is a large profit, as the daily subsistence of one costs somewhat 
less than a penny. 

The sides of the ravine towards the top were bare, and of different 
shades of colour, being tinged by the water which flows from the ve- 
getable matter above : in the bottom, on the surface that was yet un- 
worked, lay some huge, half-rounded, amorphous masses. In the 
parts which had been worked, I observed two or three substances of 
the same kind, which being too large to be moved, the earth which 
imbedded them had been cut away, and they appeared like detached 
nodules. On breaking a fragment from one of them with my ham- 
mer, I was much surprised to find it a calcareous substance, a solid 
mass composed of hexagonal crystals, with a small portion of brilliant 
crystals of specular iron ore. I presented this fragment to the pro- 
prietor, informing him that it was limestone, at which he was truly 
astonished, having never before heard of stone lime* ; nor would he 
believe me until I proved it by calcination. The mountains, as I 
afterwards found, are of the same substance. 

As I stood observing the heavy operation of cutting and carrying 
away the surface to get at the cascalhao, it occurred to me that much 
time and labour might be saved by arching the work with brick ; 
but, on suggesting the idea, I was informed that the sole or bottom 
was quite decomposed, and subject to much water. 

There is reason to suppose that the stratum of limestone, below the 
earth in the bottom of the valley, is of very modern formation, and 
that, if not too thick to cut through, there might be found, between 
it and the granite stratum underneath, a bed of cascalhao of prior 
formation, much richer in gold than the upper stratum. 



The little lime which they use here is made of shells, and is brought from Porto dos 
Cashes. 



( m ) 



After having investigated these works, we took an excursion of 
seven or eight miles, chiefly over a rich plain abounding with the 
finest timber. On the margins of the rivulets which we crossed, I 
observed that the moss was in crusted, somewhat like the tuffa at 
Matlock ; and, on more particular examination, I found a stratum 
of tuffa in all the valleys, a few inches below the surface, which, as I 
conjecture, must have proceeded from the deposition of calcareous 
matter by the overflowings of the streams after heavy rains. The 
hills even at this distance were composed of the same sparry lime- 
stone as at the gold-washing. It is much to be wished that the value 
of this material were duly appreciated at the capital, where the cost 
of the wood used in burning shells into lime exceeds the price at 
which lime brought from Santa Rita might be delivered, if proper 
roads were made for its conveyance from this district to Porto dos 
Caxhes. Such an undertaking highly deserves the attention of His 
Highnesses ministers ; the benefits likely to result from it are incal- 
culable, and the expence attending it would be trifling ; for in no 
part of the globe are roads made so cheaply, or public works of any 
kind done on such moderate terms, as in Brazil. 

This fine but almost uninhabited district produces spontaneously 
many valuable articles of commerce, which run to waste for want of 
hands to cultivate and gather them. Here is found that celebrated 
variety of the palm-tree, the long, serrated, lancet-formed leaves of 
which are composed of innumerable fibres, that rival silk both in 
fineness and strength. I bought some fishing-lines made of them 
for a mere trifle ; and I have no doubt that, if proper means were 
employed to propagate the growth of the trees, this valuable sub- 
stance might be produced in as great plenty, and at as cheap a rate, 
as flax is in England, I laid before His Highness's ministers a pro- 
ject for using it as a substitute for that article in the manufacture o£ 
fine cordage, and I shewed by experiment that it was fully adequate 
to the purpose. 



( 128 ) 



We remained two days at Santa Rita and its vicinity, and on the 
third, set out on our return, taking the same route by which we came. 
In some parts we observed numerous flocks of birds, particularly 
parrots, and a few fine wild-hens of the wood, and these were the 
only objects that engaged our attention. We reached Canta Gallo 
without having met with any monstrous serpents, or any other un- 
common sights which travellers usually see or fancy in a strange 
country. 

After a few days' rest, I set out, accompanied by a guide, to the 
supposed silver-mine, notice having previously been sent to the men 
to prepare them for my coming. We travelled for about two miles 
through a deep valley, and arrived at a rapid stream called Macaea, 
which runs between two almost perpendicular mountains of very in- 
considerable height, along one of which the road leads for about a 
mile and a half. Having passed this gloomy and dangerous ravine, 
we proceeded half a league farther, and halted at a neat farm-house 
called Machada, with a portion of good and well-cultivated land 
around it, which looked like a garden in the wilderness. The owner, 
a native of the Azores, received us very politely, and introduced us 
to his lady, who, with her blooming family of daughters, was engaged 
in needle-work on materials of their own spinning. The neatness of 
their dress, and the general air of propriety and comfort in the apart- 
ment where they sat, strongly reminded me of my country ; and 
when they regaled us with liquor made from the fruits of their own 
farm, the image of our domestic scenes in rural life was complete : I 
could almost have fancied myself transported from the rugged wilds 
of Brazil to the smiling vales of England. 

We left this peaceful abode ; and, advancing for six miles through 
thickets and forests, and over some plain land, we reached a farm 
called St. Antonio, belonging to a widow named Dona Ana, who is 
noted throughout the country for making excellent butter and cheese. 
The dwelling is of two stories, and neat, but very inconvenient. The 

9 



( 129 ) 



good lady gave me a hearty repast of milk, and we entered into 
some conversation respecting her dairy, in which I learned that she 
knew no other mode of making butter than that of agitating the 
cream in a jar or bottle ; and her notions of cheese-making were 
equally defective. In looking about the grounds for an hour, while 
our mules rested, I noticed an excellent fence, formed by planting 
a strong thorny shrub, that seemed of very rapid and luxuriant 
growth. The few cows that were grazing in the inclosures ap- 
peared to be of a superior breed, but were not managed with either 
method or foresight. The principal produce of the farm is Indian 
corn, and a little cheese ; the latter is only made occasionally, when 
there happens to be a sufficient supply of milk for the purpose. 

We were here shewn various samples of earthy matter, wrapped 
very carefully in paper, and preserved with great secrecy, under the 
names of platina, silver, &c. They proved to be merely small crys- 
tals of brilliant iron ore, and pyrites. 

Proceeding a league over a fine country, we reached the Rio 
Grande, a stream as large as the Derwent at Derby, which we 
crossed in a canoe, our mules swimming after us as usual. We 
passed several groupes of Aborigines, and occasionally saw many of 
their huts and places of abode. The road now led along the bases 
of some huge bold mountains of granite, from whose summits rushed 
fine cascades of water. The low ground was interspersed with frag- 
ments of the same rock, lying in heaps in every direction. In many 
places the grass was so tall that it reached above the skirts of my 
saddle, and, the weather being wet, rendered me very uncomfort«. 
able. After a laborious, and latterly a slow progress, we arrived by 
sun-set at the house of Father Thomas de Nossa Senhora da Con- 
cepcao, who kindly accommodated us for the night. 

The house was new, and neatly built, containing only four rooms, 
with boarded floors ; a convenience very rarely to be met with in 
these parts. It is absolutely encircled with fine streams, abounding 
with water-falls, which render the roads to it at all times indifferent, 



( 130 ) 



and in wet weather almost impassable. The father, an intelligent 
and industrious man, informed me that he took up that land about 
four years since, that he had only one negro, and had no funds 
wherewith to carry on his undertaking, except seven or eight pounds 
per annum, which he gained by his profession as a clergyman ; this 
he expended in hiring those who chose to work. He shewed me his 
garden, which was full of fine coffee- trees, and was kept in the neat- 
est order ; his fields were covered with Indian corn ; his live-stock 
consisted of a good milch cow, a number of pigs, and one mule. On 
asking him how he disposed of his produce, he told me that dealers 
came and purchased it on the spot. The whole of the sezmaria, or 
plantation, with the stock upon it, he valued at four hundred pounds 
sterling, and said that he had no doubt he could obtain that price for 
it. These were clear data for calculating the profits of farming, when 
managed with prudence and industry. Here is a man who, having 
begun with little or nothing, finds himself, at the end of four years, 
worth four hundred pounds ; a snug independency in these parts, 
and not more than his exertions and perseverance deserved. Father 
Thomas lived more comfortably than any person I had hitherto met 
with in the district : he was economical, but not parsimonious ; liberal 
in his sentiments, frank and communicative in his conversation, and 
polite in his manners. 

Here I was met by the discoverers of the reputed silver-mine, who 
came to conduct me to it. We set out on foot, and, after walking 
about six miles over mountains impassable for mules, fording rivulets, 
and passing thickets that left me scarcely a single article of dress un- 
torn, we arrived at the miserable hut of these poor men ; a perfect 
contrast to the neat dwelling of Father Thomas. Never in my 
life was I so exhausted by fatigue ; I lay down, unable to go any 
further, and rested for about an hour, when, being somewhat re- 
covered, I accompanied the men, along the edge of a beautiful 
stream, to the foot of the mountain, where they shewed me a hole 
-which they had dug, about two feet deep, and informed me that the 



( 131 ) 



sand it contained at the bottom abounded with grains of silver. 
Having ordered a quantity to be taken out, I proceeded to examine 
the base of the mountain, which I found to be of granite-like gneiss, 
with garnets, and small crystals of pyrites. Near this place the mar- 
gin of the rivulet contained rounded stones and sand, but no where 
was there to be found any metallic substance, except the one above- 
mentioned. Indeed, the Very idea of silver appearing here in dust 
or grains, as gold does, would be preposterous, and contradictory to 
every principle of nature, as^ in such a state, it would probably have 
been attacked by the sulphur in the pyrites, so as to have assumed 
the form of a sulphuret. 

I returned in a most wearied and exhausted state to Father 
Thomas's, where, after some needful repose, I proceeded to examine 
the sand and stones I had collected at the supposed silver-mine, but 
no particle of metal was to be found. I then ordered the men to 
produce their samples, which 1 examined both by the blow-pipe and 
by acids, but no silver appeared. After equivocating very much, they 
acknowledged that they had rubbed and beaten substances to powder, 
and when they found specular iron ore they thought it was silver. In 
one of the samples there certainly was silver, but it appeared to 
have been filed probably from an old buckle or spoon, or rubbed on 
a stone and mixed with a pulverized substance. The farce could no 
longer be carried on : I charged them, in a most determined manner, 
with imposture, which, after some hesitation, they confessed : an 
officer who was with me would have secured them, but I restrained 
bim ; for, having obtained a confession, I was unwilling to bring them 
to punishment, or to render them more miserable than they already 
were by having them sent to the army. Perhaps that would have 
been doing them a greater service than setting them at liberty ; for 
they were too lazy to work, and would, no doubt, return to their old 
habits of prowling about, and subsisting on the credulity of the pub- 
lic by spreading fallacious reports about mines, precious stones, &c. 
Such impositions are not uncommon in South America : I have 
known instances in which copper-filings, mixed with earth and after- 

s 2 



( 132 ) 



wards washed, have been produced as samples, in order to enhance 
the value of land, or to serve some other sinister purpose. A passion 
for mining is fatally prevalent among some of the lower orders of the 
people : by deluding them with prospects of becoming speedily rich, 
it creates in them a disgust for labour, and entails want and wretched- 
ness upon them. Even among the few families of this district, I 
observed some examples of its effects ; those who devoted them- 
selves wholly to mining were in general badly clothed and worse fed, 
while those who attended to agriculture alone were well provided 
with every necessary of life. 

Having concluded the affair, I took leave of Father Thomas, and 
returned to Canta Gallo, where I prepared my papers for a report 
respecting it, as the Conde de Linhares had desired me. During the 
remainder of my stay I collected specimens of the different species 
of wood which the neighbourhood produces. The following is a list 
of them ; 

Venatico — excellent timber. 

Cedar — good and durable. 

Pereiba — hard and good. 

Olio — very solid, and of a peculiar fragrance. 

Cabiuna. 

Jaracanda — cabinet-wood variegated, black and yellow. — 
This is called rose-wood in England: but the best sorts, 
as it appears to me, have not hitherto been imported. 

Jaracatang. 

Ubatang. 

Palms — many varieties, among which is the iri, before de- 
scribed. Its wood is unrivalled for strength and elasticity. 

Garfuana — the bark of which, as I was informed, affords a 
yellow dye. 

Embey — a creeping plant. The stems are used instead of 

cords, and often made into bridles. 
Many species of thorny trees. 



( 133 ) 



Most of the above-named species of woods are of large growth, and 
well calculated for ship-building. It is remarkable that this district 
produces none of the dye-wood called Brazil wood. 

Here are innumerable fruit-trees and shrubs which I have omitted 
to particularize. Tobacco is cultivated in some parts, and is always 
manufactured into roll by uniting the leaves with each other, and 
twisting them with a winch. By this operation the juice is expressed, 
and, after a short exposure to the atmosphere, the colour of the to- 
bacco changes from green to black. 

Of wild animals, ounces are the most common ; they are met with 
of various colours, some black and brown-red. Tapirs or antas are 
not unfrequent, but I saw only the footsteps of some of them. Wild 
hogs breed here in great numbers, and also long-bearded monkeys ; 
the latter, when asleep, snore so loud as to astonish the traveller. 
The most formidable reptiles are the corral snake, the surrocuco, 
the surrocuco-tinga, and the jararaca, all said to be mortally veno- 
mous, none of which I ever saw on the journey, except a small one 
of the former species. 

The prevailing method of clearing and cultivating the land here, 
is precisely similar to that practised in the neighbourhood of 
St. Paul's. After the timber and underwood have been cut down 
and burnt (often very imperfectly), the women negroes dibble the 
seed ; in about six weeks a slight weeding is performed, and then the 
ground is let alone till harvest. The seed-time begins in October 
and lasts to November ; the maize is ripe in four or five months. 
The next year they commonly sow beans on the corn land, which 
they then let lie, and proceed to clear new ground. It is not com- 
mon to molest the land from which they have had two crops in suc- 
cession, before eight or ten years have elapsed. 

The sugar-cane and mandioca require from fourteen to eighteen 
months. Coffee planted by shoots bears fruit in two years, and is 
in perfection in five or six years. Cottons and palma christi, raised 
from seed, bear the first year. 

Transplanting is only practised with tobacco ; engrafting is little 
known and rarely attempted. 



( 134 ) 



The Indian corn is ground by a horizontal water-wheel, which 
acquires great velocity from the rush of water upon it. On the 
upper end is fixed the mill-stone, which makes from fifty to sixty 
revolutions in a minute. They have likewise a mode of pounding 
the corn into flour, by a machine called a sloth. Near a current of 
water a large wooden mortar is placed, the pestle of which is mor- 
tised into the end of a lever twenty-five or thirty feet long, resting 
upon a fulcrum at five-eights of its length. The extremity of the 
shorter arm of this beam is scooped out, so as to receive a sufficient 
weight of water to raise the other end, to \yhich appends the pestle, 
and to discharge itself when it has sunk to a given point. The 
alternate emptying and filling of this cavity cause the elevation and 
fall of the pestle, which take place about four times per minute. 
This contrivance surpasses all others in simplicity, and in a place 
where the waste of water is of no consequence it completely answers 
its purpose. 

Having finished my affairs at Canta Gallo, I set out on my return 
to the capital, accompanied for about a league of the road by the 
worthy governor, the captain, the treasurer, and almost all the in- 
habitants. During a residence of about fifteen days among these 
excellent men, my table had been sumptuously supplied without 
cost, and I had been treated with a degree of respect far exceeding 
my expectations or merits, I took leave of them with regret, wishing 
most sincerely that it might be in my power to be of service to them 
at court, by making representations in their favour. 

I arrived at Moro Quemado at night, after a journey of thirty- 
four miles*, and on the next day, in good time, reached the house 



* In one part of the road we passed a nest of insects (called mirabunde) which are ex- 
tremely troublesome to cattle, and cause the mules to be very violent and unruly. They 
attack with great pertinacity, and pursue to a considerable distance ; we took a devious route 
to get rid of them, but I was followed by some which stung me as painfully as an irritated 
wasp could have done. There is a singular variety of them having a horny pointed pro- 
boscis, with which they pierce most keenly and give intolerable pain. 



( 135 ) 



of my worthy friend Captain Ferrera. Being now less pressed for 
time, I took a more leisurely survey of his establishment, particularly 
of his sugar-work and distillery, both which are very ill conducted. 
When I saw the furnaces for heating the coppers in the latter, I 
freely told the Captain, that they could not have been constructed 
on a worse plan, but I received for answer, that no better was 
known. It would indeed be extremely difficult to introduce improve- 
ments into this or any other parts of the distillery, for every thing is 
left to the management of the negroes. When I asked any question 
concerning the process, the owner professed his ignorance of it, and 
sent for one of the African foremen to answer me. With this man 
I reasoned respecting the excessive quantity of fuel consumed to no 
purpose, and proposed a method for saving it, as well as for cor- 
recting the disagreeable taste of the rum, caused by the empyreuma, 
which was, to re-distil it with an equal quantity of water, taking 
care previously to clean out the still ; but he only laughed at me, 
and signified that his certainly must be the best method, for he had 
learned it of an old sugar-maker. Thus it is, that from the in^ 
difference of the owners to their own interest, things are suffered to 
go on in the same routine, being left to the direction of men who 
shrink from a temporary increase of labour, even when it promises 
them a lasting advantage. This aversion to improvement I have 
often observed among the inhabitants of Brazil ; when, for instance, 
I have questioned a brick-maker, a sugar-maker, a soap-boiler, or 
even a miner, his reasons for conducting his concerns in such an 
imperfect manner, I have been almost invariably referred to a negro 
for answers to my interrogatories. 

Some parts of this estate are said to contain gold, and at the time 
of my visit, Captain Ferrera was negotiating for permission from 
Government to work them. I presented to him a drawing of a plan 
for washing the cascalhao in a manner superior to that commonly 
practised, and explained to him the use of grinding or stamping 
those concrete masses frequently found in it, which generally con- 



( 136 ) 



tain particles of gold, but being too hard to be Crushed by the hand, 
are thrown aside among the debris. 

In this fazenda, as in most others, the conveniences for storing 
the produce are so very poor and imperfect that the weevil soon 
gets into the corn, and the cotton, coffee, and other produce are 
liable to be deteriorated in a thousand ways. The stabling too is 
bad, and the cattle are deplorably neglected ; indeed the only part 
of the live stock that seems to be tolerably well attended to, is the 
swine. In the dwelling-house I observed a total inattention to do- 
mestic comfort ; its general appearance confirmed a remark which 
I had often heard made, that the owners of estates here dislike to 
live upon them, and considering their residence as only temporary, 
make shift with poor accommodations. 

The tract of land belonging to the farm is full two miles square, 
and though still susceptible of great improvement, has not been 
wholly neglected ; the parts already cleared have produced many 
valuable crops, and the rest will no doubt in a few years be brought 
to an equally promising state of cultivation. 

Having staid two days with Captain Ferrera, I set out on the 
morning of the third for Porto dos Caxhes, where I arrived at two 
o'clock, after a journey of thirty miles, and was delayed some 
time, as the river was crowded with vessels, laden with ship-timber, 
for the capital. As soon as the navigation became sufficiently open, 
I embarked in a large boat, of about ten tons burthen, and rowing 
all night to the mouth of the river, sailed with a land wind, and 
arrived at Rio de Janeiro about noon. My first care was to inform 
His Excellency the Minister of my return, after which I employed 
two days in drawing up my journal for his inspection. He received 
it in the handsomest manner, and laid it before His Royal Highness, 
who was pleased to signify, that my description of the country, 
through which I had travelled, merited his approbation. 

9 



( 137 ) 



CHAR X. 

Permission obtained to visit the Diamond Mines. — Account of a 
pretended Diamond presented to the Prince Regent. — Journey to 
Villa Rica. 

A ITER I had thoroughly recovered from the fatigues of my late 
r^%" journey, I solicited His Royal Highness for permission to go 
and explore the diamond mines of Serra do Frio. This favour had 
never as yet been granted to a foreigner, nor had any Portuguese 
been permitted to visit the district where the works are situated, 
except on business relative to them, and even then, under restric- 
tions which rendered it impossible to acquire the means of giving an 
adequate description of them to the public. Through the kind 
mediation of the Cond6 de Linhares, the permission was granted, 
and my passports and letters of recommendation were speedily 
made out. Lord Strangford used his influence to further my under- 
taking, and it was through his goodness in recommending me that I 
obtained admission to the archives, for the purpose of examining 
all the manuscript maps, and of copying from any of them what- 
ever might be necessary to guide me in my route. It may here be 
proper to observe, that the most eligible mode of travelling in the 
interior of Brazil, especially on such an excursion as I had under- 
taken, is to procure orders from the government, and an escort of 
soldiers, who have a right, under such orders, to require proper 
relays of mules from all persons who reside on or near the road. 
The Conde de Linhares intimated to me, that I might select any 
two soldiers I thought proper, and while I was deliberating on 
the choice, a singular occurrence took place, which was the means 
of furnishing me with two men of the corps of miners, who were 

T 



( 138 ) 



appointed to attend me, under an injunction on the part of His 
Excellency that their future promotion would depend entirely on the 
report which I should give of their conduct after my return. I am 
happy to say that their services merited every commendation. 

The occurrence to which I allude was this: — A free negro of Villa 
do Principe, about nine hundred miles distant, had the assurance 
to write a letter to the Prince Regent, announcing that he possessed 
an amazingly large diamond which he had received from a deceased 
friend some years ago, and which he begged he might have the 
honour to present to His Royal Highness in person. As the mag- 
nitude which this poor fellow ascribed to his diamond was such as to 
raise imagination to its highest pitch, an order was immediately 
dispatched to the commander of Villa do Principe, to send him 
forthwith to Rio de Janeiro, he was accommodated with a convey- 
ance and escorted by two soldiers. As he passed along the road, all 
who had heard the report hailed him as already honoured with a 
cross of the order of St. Bento, and as sure of being rewarded with 
the pay of a general of brigade. The soldiers also anticipated great 
promotion; and all persons envied the fortunate negro. At length, 
after a journey which occupied about twenty-eight days, he arrived 
at the capital, and was straightway conveyed to the palace. His 
happiness was now about to be consummated, in a few moments the 
hopes which he had for so many years indulged would be realized, 
and he should be exalted from a low and obscure condition to a 
state of affluence and distinction ; such no doubt were the thoughts 
which agitated him during the moments of suspence. At length he 
was admitted into the presence ; he threw himself at the Prince's 
feet, and delivered his wonderful gem ; His Highness was astonished 
at its magnitude ; a pause ensued ; the attendants waited to hear 
the Prince's opinion, and what he said they seconded. A round 
diamond nearly a pound in weight filled them all with wonder ; 
some ready calculators reckoned the millions it was worth ; others 
found it difficult to numerate the sum at which it would be valued, 



( 139 ) 



but the general opinion of His Highnesses servants Avas, that the 
treasury was many millions of crowns the richer. The noise which 
this occurrence created among the higher circles may be easily con- 
ceived ; the general topic of remark and wonder was the negro's 
offering. It was shewn to the ministers, among whom an apprehen- 
sion, and even a doubt, was expressed that a substance so large and 
round might not prove a real diamond ; they, however, sent it to the 
treasury under a guard, and it was lodged in the deposit of the 
jewel-room. 

On the next day, the Conde de Linhares sent for me, and related 
all the circumstances which had come to his knowledge respecting 
this famous jewel, adding, in a low tone of voice, that he had his 
doubts about its proving a genuine diamond. His Excellency directed 
me to attend at his office in a few hours, Avhen letters from himself and 
the other ministers to the Treasury should be given me *, for permis- 
sion to see this invaluable gem, in order to determine what it really 
was. Readily accepting a charge of so interesting a nature, I pre- 
pared myself, and attended at the hour appointed, when I received 
the letters, which I presented at the Treasury to an officer in waiting. 
I was led through several apartments, in which much business 
seemed to be transacting, to the grand chamber, where presided the 
treasurer, attended by his secretaries. Having my letters in his hand, 
he entered into some conversation with me relative to the subject ; 
I was then shewn through other grand apartments hung with scarlet 
and gold, and ornamented with figures as large as life, representing 
justice holding the balance. In the inner room, to which we were 
conducted, there were several strong chests with three locks each, 
the keys of which were kept by three different officers, who were all 
required to be present at the opening. One of these chests being 



* No person can be permitted to see the diamonds in the Treasury without a joint order 
from the ministers to that effect. 

T 2 



( 140 ) 



unlocked, an elegant little cabinet was taken out, from which the 
treasurer took the gem, and in great form presented it to me. Its 
value sunk at the first sight, for before I touched it I was convinced 
that it was a rounded piece of crystal. It was about an inch and 
a half in diameter. On examining it, I told the governor it was not 
a diamond, and to convince him I took a diamond of five or six 
carats and with it cut a very deep nick in the stone. This was proof 
positive ; a certificate was accordingly made out, stating, that it was 
an inferior substance of little or no value, which I signed. 

Other boxes were now unlocked, from one of which they shewed 
me two large slabs of diamond, each a full inch on the superficies, 
and about the eighth of an inch in thickness, of a very bad brown 
colour. When found, they formed one entire piece, which, being 
amorphous, was not known to be a diamond, until the adminis- 
trator or chief of the working party, after keeping it by him many 
days, had recourse to the old experiment of placing it on a hard 
stone and striking it with a hammer. The result of this experiment 
is, that if the substance resist the blow, or separate in laminae, it 
must be a diamond ; the latter was the case in the present instance, 
and the man having thus made two diamonds from one, transmitted 
them to the intendant. 

The river Abaite, from whence these pieces came, has produced 
one of an octaedral form, which weighs seven-eights of an ounce 
Troy, and is perhaps the largest diamond in the world. It was found 
about twelve years ago by three men who were under sentence of 
banishment for high crimes ; but on presenting this valuable gem to 
the then Viceroy, they were pardoned and rewarded. It is now in 
the private possession of the Prince Regent. 

I was afterwards favoured with a sight of the remaining diamonds 
in the Treasury ; they appeared to be in quantity about four or 
five thousand carats. The largest did not generally exceed eight 
carats, except one of a fine octaedral form, full seventeen. Among 

9 



( 141 ) 



the few coloured diamonds, one of the smallest was a beautiful pink, 
one a fine blue, and several of a green tinge ; the yelloAv were the 
most common and least esteemed. 

Having now finished my business, I took my leave of the treasurer, 
with thanks for his polite attention, and on my return home wrote 
a letter to the Conde de Linhares, stating the result of my visit. It 
was no agreeable task for a stranger to have to announce that a 
substance which had been considered as an inestimable addition to 
the treasures of the state, was in reality, though singular in its ap- 
pearance, of very trifling value, and this too in a letter which was 
to be laid before the Prince. His Highness, however, was prepared 
for the intelligence, and was too noble-minded to manifest any 
chagrin at the disappointment. The poor negro who had presented 
it was of course deeply afflicted by this unwelcome news ; instead of 
being accompanied home by an escort, he had to find his way thither 
as he could, and would, no doubt, have to encounter the ridicule 
and contempt of those who had of late congratulated him on his 
good fortune; 

When I had nearly completed my preparations for the journey, 
Mr. Good all, a most respectable merchant, expressed a desire to 
accompany me to Villa Rica, which I readily acceded to, as he 
was a most agreeable companion. Lord Strangford having pro- 
cured him passports from the ministers, he was enabled to join me 
without delay. On the 17th of August 1809, we set out on a 
journey which no Englishman had ever before undertaken, nor had 
any ever yet been permitted to pass the barrier of alpine mountains 
that stretch along the coast. . 

Having embarked in a large market-boat with our retinue, which 
consisted of the two soldiers before-mentioned, and my servant, a 
most trusty negro-boy, we made sail at mid-day with a sea-breeze, 
and run down the bay about six leagues, where we passed the island 
of Governador and various others, one of which was the beautiful 
Cocoa-nut island. Proceeding along the strait, formed by it and 



( 142 ) 



another of similar extent, we crossed a fine open bay, and arrived 
at the mouth of the Moremim, a picturesque river which presents 
in its serpentine course a great variety of beautiful scener}'. It was 
now sun-set; the weather was mild and serene, and we paused 
awhile to enjoy one of the finest rural prospects which we had ever 
seen in Brazil — a fine romantic fore-ground, enriched by the vivid 
foliage of the woods on the banks of the stream, and contrasted by 
the bold outline of the mountains in the distance, among which we 
noticed that singular chain of perpendicular rocks, called the Organ- 
pipe mountains, from their resemblance in form and position to the 
front of the instrument alluded to. Having advanced two leagues 
up the river we arrived at a village on its margin, called Porto da Es- 
trella, a place of great stir and bustle, on account of the hourly 
arrival of numerous droves of mules laden with produce from the 
interior. Here are some poor dwellings, and a number of large 
storehouses for the reception of the produce. The muleteers, being 
provided with bedding and cooking utensils, never leave their cattle, 
so that good inns are to them unnecessary. We were shewn into 
the best in the place, which was as dirty and inconvenient as can 
possibly be imagined. I shall forbear to detail the discomforts of 
the night, and merely observe that they were such as to make us 
early stirrers in the morning. Our soldiers procured us mules, but 
owing to the great bustle of loading and unloading, we were not in 
travelling order until ten o'clock. We now proceeded about three 
leagues along the low land, having the range of mountains on our 
left, and passing the village of Piadade entered on a beautiful plain 
at their base. We stopped at a house at which the Prince Regent 
had passed three nights for the benefit of the air; but not being- 
able to procure refreshment there, we passed on and began our 
ascent along an excellent paved road, extending five miles on a 
very steep elevation along the sides and over the ridges of the 
mountains. Having rested awhile at the half-way house, which we 
had been near an hour in gaining, we toiled on, relieving ourselves 



( 145 ) 



at times by turning to take a view of Rio de Janeiro, and the bay, 
which from this lofty eminence appeared to great advantage. With 
some difficulty we reached the summit, which, as I supposed, is 
four thousand feet above the level of the sea ; the atmosphere was 
at least ten degrees colder than on the plain. 

Our next halting place was a small village called Corgo Seco, 
situated in a most rugged and uneven district, with not half an 
acre of level ground in any part of its vicinity. Having taken some 
refreshment here, we proceeded to Belmonte, a beautiful spot, 
situated by the edge of a rapid stream, which washes the base of 
an immense mountain of granite on the left. We journeyed along 
this stream until we reached a station called Padre Correo, from the 
name of its owner. It consists of a house and chapel, with a hand- 
some area in front. The father maintains a large establishment of 
negroes, many of whom are employed in beating out mules' shoes 
from the cool Swedish iron, after they have been forged into form. 
For these articles there is a considerable demand, as the un wrought 
material pays no duty on this side the river Paraiba, while on the 
other it is taxed full 100 per cent., which is also the case with salt. 
The great consumption of these necessary articles has probably in- 
duced Government to lay these heavy duties upon them, but certainly 
every principle of good policy furnishes an argument against the 
measure. Padre Correo received us very hospitably, afforded us 
an asylum for the night, and assisted us in regulating our baggage 
by supplying a pair of cane panniers for one of the mules, which 
proved very serviceable. Before sun-rise we were awakened by the 
clatter of hammers in the forges ; the weather was dewy, and so 
cold that my thermometer was down at 46°. We passed some time 
in viewing the garden, which was in tolerable order, and contained 
some fine peach trees in blossom. Our host informed us, that he 
had a good plantation a few miles distant, but his chief concern 
was the selling of corn and shoes for the use of the mules. 



( 144 ) 



Leaving this station we skirted the Piabunha, a river abounding 
in falls, which flows into the Paraiba. Among the hills and dales 
which we traversed, we at times observed farm-houses and plantations; 
but the road, farther on, was quite confined by continual wood-sce- 
nery. After proceeding about twenty miles we reached Zabolla, a 
tolerable establishment, consisting of a house of two stories, a small 
chapel, and a sugar-engine, in an unfinished state, situated in the 
bottom of a valley. The owner, Captain Jose Antonio Barbosa, 
was a Portugueze of the'old school ; he seemed much vexed that His 
Royal Highness had permitted strangers to travel the country, and 
treated us with a constrained civility which shewed that he thought 
we were come about no good. His conversation ran continually 
against the operations of Government in laying taxes upon rum and 
other commodities ; and though he tasted the sweets of office, being 
part-renter of the lucrative ferry of Paraiba, which post he obtained 
through the interest of a very worthy gentleman in Rio de Janeiro, 
yet he had all the acerbity of a disappointed place-hunter. His 
self-interested and narrow-minded views were but too plainly di- 
rected to one object, monopoly ; the mere mention of the Prince 
Regent's liberality in permitting strangers to reside in Brazil ap- 
peared to torture him, and in short, so much of the snarler did he 
display while discussing this topic, that no character could have 
more forcibly reminded us of the dog in the manger. It is, how- 
ever, but fair to add, that while indulging in severe reflections on 
strangers, he did not forget the duties of hospitality : before we went 
to rest, he invited us to partake of a family supper, consisting of a 
boiled duck smothered in rice, and a stewed pullet, to which sat 
down eight people, including ourselves. Having thanked our host 
for his kindness, we retired to the apartments allotted to us. My bed 
was so uneasy that I was obliged to sit up during most of the 
night, having no alternative, for as the clay floor was neither 
boarded nor paved, I could not venture to throw t]ie bed-clothes 



( 145 ) 



upon it, and sleep there. Never did mortal hail day-break with 
greater satisfaction ; but my agreeable feelings were soon damped by 
one of those little vexatious accidents which in some states of mind 
are more hard to bear than real misfortunes. I had placed my 
thermometer in a wind-door or air-hole (for the aperture was not 
glazed) ; a stupid fellow, in fastening the bridle of a mule to one of 
the bars, threw down the instrument and broke it. Luckily I had 
another, therefore the loss was not so grievous. 

Our soldiers having, with their wonted alacrity, provided mules, we 
set out at an early hour, and entered upon a much more level road 
than that of the preceding day. We passed along several valleys, 
the surface of which presented clay and decomposed granite, in 
some places more ferruginous than in others. There are numerous 
sheds all the way for the refreshment of travellers and their cattle. 
This day's journey being only sixteen miles, we soon completed it, 
arriving about noon at the ferry of Paraibuna. This river, though as 
wide as the Thames at Westminster, is unnavigable, by reason of 
the large rocks which impede its course. The ferry-boat arriving, 
we got into it with all our mules, and were conveyed with oars and 
setting poles to the other side, where we found a register for the 
examination of passengers, their passports, and property. The 
place is guarded by a few old soldiers, under the command of a 
lieutenant, who, though in ill health, shewed us every attention. 
Our soldiers got us a dinner cooked at a vend *, kept by a young 
man originally from Oporto ; we took tea and supped with the 
commandant, who assigned to us an apartment in the Register. He 



* This name is given to what we should call a huckster's shop, where various articles, 
such as liquors, Indian corn, and sometimes sugar, are sold. Though they profess to 
answer the purpose of inns, they are destitute of conveniences ; travellers who carry their 
beds and cooking utensils with them, generally prefer lodging in a rancho or astallage. 
Shelter from rain and night air is the only convenience which a lodging in these districts 
can be expected to afford. 

U 



( 146 ) 



was very civil, and seemed highly pleased to see us, frequently ex- 
claiming, " Os Ingleses son grande gente," (the English are a great 
nation). We were gratified by this and other national compliments 
which he paid us, and not Jess so by the respect which every one 
who came to visit us testified for our country, as being in alliance 
with a Prince to whom they were enthusiastically devoted. 

The Register is a substantial edifice of wood, built on posts to pre- 
serve it from the overflows of the river, which frequently inundate the 
sandy flat on which it stands. It contains a few rooms, which serve 
as barracks for the guards, and has a handsome gallery fronting the 
ferry. The station is> low, and in summer is said to be very hot and 
unhealthy; a circumstance which, joined to the indolence and 
poverty of the inhabitants, may sufficiently account for the general 
appearance of debility observable among them. The little employ- 
ment they have arises chiefly from the passengers who frequent this 
great thoroughfare, and from the numerous troops of mules which are 
continually arriving on their way to, as well as from, the interior. 
The barges of the ferry are as fine vessels as any I ever saw used for the 
purpose ; and indeed they ought to be, for a considerable toll is paid, 
not only for every mule, or other beast of burden, but for every person 
crossing the river. The annual amount collected yields, no doubt, 
a handsome profit to the renters ; but it might be considerably aug- 
mented if a regular road were opened to Canta Gallo, which is only 
eighteen leagues distant. 

Being informed that our next day's journey would be an arduous 
one, on account of the hilly district through which we should have 
to pass, we retired to rest betimes, and were stirring at an early 
hour. We mounted fresh mules, and proceeded along a good road 
through a rugged and thinly peopled district; in the course of five 
leagues, we passed over seven very high granite mountains, and eight 
smaller ones, and at length reached the ferry of the Paraiba, a river 
considerably larger than the Paraibuna. At the Register belonging, 
to it, which is more extensive and better guarded than the former, 



( 147 ) 



all goods are examined and weighed, paying duty according to their 
weight, whatever be their kind, quality, or value. This regulation 
bears very unequally upon different articles ; salt, for instance, pays 
nearly cent, per cent, iron and lead about the same ; while woollens, 
cottons, and other light goods do not, on an average, exceed eight 
or ten per cent. 

The commandant of the Register offered us every assistance, and 
was kind enough to provide us a fresh mule for our baggage. The 
short time we staid here did not allow much leisure for observation ; 
and, indeed, there was little of novelty to observe. The situation 
of the Register is pleasant ; the country around is well wooded 
and fertile, though mountainous. The river is almost destitute of 
fish. 

"We proceeded about a league and a half further, through thick 
woods, and arrived at a place named Rosina de Negra, where we 
halted for the night. Our next day's journey presented the same 
varieties of hill and ravine as those we had already passed. In one 
part of the road we observed a kind of barracks, consisting of an 
astallage and some ranchos or huts, where an officer and about 
twenty horse-soldiers are stationed ; they patrole the road, and are 
authorised to stop travellers, and make the strictest search of those 
whom they suspect of having gold-dust or diamonds concealed. 
Proceeding two leagues, we arrived at the Register of Matthias 
Barbosa, situated in the midst of an almost impervious wood. It 
was built about sixty or seventy years ago, by the gentleman whose 
name it bears, and who was an ancestor of the noble family of 
Sousa. . 

This register is a large oblong building, with two great doors at 
each end, through which all travellers, with their mules, are required 
to pass. On entering, they stop, and deliver their passports to a 
soldier for examination by the commander, who, if he judges that a 
correct account is given of the property, suffers them to proceed : 
but if any grounds of suspicion occur, the mules are unloaded, and 

u 2 



( 148 ) 



all the contents of their cargoes are examined with the strictest scru- 
tiny. In these examinations it not unfrequently happens that a 
negro has been suspected of swallowing a diamond;; in which case, he 
is shut up in a bare room until such time as the truth can be proved* 
The command of this station is entrusted to a major. The inner 
part of the building consists of apartments for the officers, ranchos for 
the soldiers, cells for the confinement of suspected persons, and 
stabling for the mules. In the yard there are numerous posts, to 
which the cattle are tied while loading or unloading. There is also 
a vend for the accommodation of travellers. 

Leaving this place, we proceeded through an extensive tract of 
wood, in which we occasionally observed a few deer, but no birds, 
except now and then a green parrot or a wood- pecker. The road, as 
far as the eye could reach, was bounded on each hand by close con- 
tinuous thickets, and rarely enlivened by traces of habitation. Those 
persons who live by the way-side are commonly of the lowest order 
of people, who settle there with the view of selling refreshments to 
travellers, and corn for the mules ; they are in general an idle, gos- 
sipping race : the more respectable classes reside at a distance from 
the public road. 

We arrived about four in the evening at a farm-house called 
Madeiras, belonging to Captain Jose Pinto de Souza. The situation 
is cold and salubrious, the vicinity well-watered, and abounding in 
fine tracts of arable and pasture land, but deplorably neglected. The 
owner seemed to prefer ease, with inconvenience, to labour, with com- 
fort ; and, satisfied with the spontaneous bounty of nature, cared 
little about improving it by industry. The house itself was miserably 
out of repair : its walls, which consisted of lattice-work plastered 
with clay, were full of holes and crevices, and its roof was in a very 
crazy and shattered condition. We fared but poorly, and passed a 
very indifferent night ; often reflecting on the apathy and listless in- 
dolence of the people : who, thought we, in a cold climate would live 



( 149 ) 



in a dwelling full of cracks and air-holes, when a few dashes of mud 
might render it comparatively comfortable ! 

From this place, which is an hundred miles from Porto da Estrellaj 
we continued our route next day over a chain of mountains, among 
which we encountered other falls of the Paraiba nearer its source, 
and, traversing a tract of close wood-land, arrived at a station called 
the Fazenda do Juez de Fuera. Here we procured fresh mules, and 
proceeded for a considerable distance on the ascent, when we met with 
two planters from Minas Novas, who were going to Rio de Janeiro with 
forty-six mules loaded with cotton, packed in raw hides, each beast 
carrying two packages. They had been nearly three months on the 
road. We availed ourselves of their kind offers to carry intelligence 
to our friends in the capital, and gave them letters for that purpose. 

The remainder of our day's journey afforded few incidents worth 
notice. We observed several pines of a singular species, which 
yielded abundance of resin. In one part of the road I shot a most 
beautiful bird, the name of which I could not learn, but was informed 
that it flew about much in the night. In another part, we noticed a 
beast of prey, which was crossing the road before us, and fled at our 
approach. I killed a small water-snake, with two fins near its vent. 

We arrived towards evening at the Fazenda of Antonio Ferrera, 
formerly a good house, but now almost in ruins. The owner was not 
at home ; but his old negro-servants provided as handsomely for us 
as we could have expected them to do if he had been present. We 
made a tolerable supper of stewed fowls, with the addition of a fine 
wild turkey, which I had killed in the vicinity. I may here observe 
that a traveller in this country should neglect no opportunity of pro- 
viding for himself with his gun, as he is never certain of palatable fare 
at the places where he alights. 

The surface of the country is in general good strong clay ; all the 
rocks are of primitive granite, in the composition of which hornblende 
predominates. We this day passed the site of the first gold-wash- 
ing, which is very small, and has been many years abandoned. The 



( m ) 



rivulets have a great deal of oxide of iron in small grains mixed with 
the sand in their eddies. In some places the granite is in a decom- 
posing state, and there are large nodules of what the Germans call 
griinstein, which appear not unlike basalt. The air in these elevated 
districts is fresh and cool, except from two to four o'clock in the 
afternoon, when I found it rather hot. In the evening, while amusing 
ourselves with shooting, we observed a man in a friar's habit, with a 
box bearing a picture of the Virgin, fastened to his waist by a belt. 
His face was overgrown with hair> and his whole appearance exceed- 
ingly wild and uncouth. On inquiry, we were informed that this 
extraordinary figure was a hermit ; and that he had embraced this 
austere way of life by way of doing penance for some great crime. 

Having pursued our diversion while day-light lasted, we returned 
to the house, where, for the first time since our departure from Rio, 
we partook of a comfortable meal, and regaled ourselves with a bottle 
of excellent madeira, which my worthy companion by good fortune 
had brought with him. 

We set out next day by sun-rise, and proceeded some miles along 
a tolerable road. The vallies as we advanced were wider, and more 
easy of cultivation, but the mountains were excessively steep. On 
even ground our general pace was three or four miles an hour, but 
on the acclivities we proceeded slowly, and were obliged to observe 
every step of our mules, and to balance ourselves accordingly. This 
action of the body produces no perceptible consequences for the first 
few days, but afterwards it begins to torture the loins with a species 
of lumbago. 

After a journey of twenty -eight miles, which occupied nine hours, 
we found ourselves at six in the evening at a small farm-house called 
Fazenda de Dona Clara and Dona Maria. These two good ladies 
honoured us with a more polite reception than we had hitherto ex- 
perienced on the journey. It being the festival of St. Bartholomew, 
a great holiday among the Brazilians, they had prepared a more 
sumptuous dinner than usual, of which they kindly invited us to par- 



( 151 ) 



take. We were the more sensible "of this act of hospitality, because 
it evidently proceeded from sincere good-will ; and, like the widow's 
mite, derived additional merit from the smallness of the store which 
supplied the means of performing it. Their establishment seemed 
barely provided with necessaries ; and the house in which they lived 
was ill built and scantily furnished. We could not but smile at the 
earnestness with which one of these worthy ladies complained of the 
hardness of the times; they paid, she observed, a moidore every three 
years in taxes. How happy, thought we, would our English spinsters 
of slender incomes deem themselves in being so lightly assessed! 

We passed the evening tolerably, having provided ourselves with 
candles, which we found very necessary both here and in other 
places on the road ; for the rooms in general are lighted only by a 
glimmering lamp, which rather augments than diminishes their me- 
lancholy gloom. 

In the morning we were informed that the mules which had been 
provided for us over-night were taken away from the stable. This so en- 
raged our soldier, that he immediately rode in quest of them, brought 
them back, and pressed others for our service. We here saw the 
convenience of travelling under official orders : had we not been so pro- 
vided, we might have been exposed to a most vexatious delay. These 
military requisitions of cattle may be considered by the owner as a 
grievance ; but he generally indemnifies himself by high charges to 
other travellers, and by impositions in the way of trade. 

Being now within the province of Minas Geraes, (a country famed 
at Rio de Janeiro for its excellent cheese,) I expected to see some 
improvement in the condition of the country, — some establishment 
worthy of being called a farm, — some dwelling, constructed not 
merely for shelter but for comfort. I hoped to remark among the in- 
habitants that air of health and animation which springs from the in- 
vigorating occupations and cheering pursuits of husbandry ; but no 
such pleasing change was perceptible : the same want of exertion 
prevailed here as in other parts of the country : the people seemed 



( 152 | 

to act as if the tenure by which they held their lands was about to 
be abolished ; all around them had the appearance of make-shift t 
their old houses, fast hastening to decay, bore no marks of repair 
about them : wherever a bit of garden-ground was inclosed, it ap- 
peared over-run with weeds ; where coffee-trees, planted in former 
years, still existed, the present occupiers were too indolent to gather 
the fruit: no inclosures were made for pasturage; a few goats supplied 
the little milk that was consumed ; and cows'-milk was rarely to be 
procured. On observing these deplorable consequences of the apathy 
of the inhabitants, I could not but reflect on the advantages which 
might accrue from the introduction of the English system of agricul- 
ture among them. The example of a single farm, conducted on that 
sj^stem, might go far towards rousing the people from their slothful 
state ; and, when they once felt their faculties awakened, they would 
be ashamed to lounge about as they now do, under an old great coat, 
for days together, burthens to themselves, and objects of contempt 
to all strangers who see them. 

The next place we visited, after quitting the residence of these old 
ladies, offered every requisite for making the experiment above al- 
luded to. It was a fazenda called Mantegera, situated in the largest 
plain we had hitherto traversed, consisting of rich land watered by 
numerous streams. The establishment was in a fit state to begin 
with : the house was falling to ruin, and the grounds about it were 
over-run with weeds and brush-wood. What more desirable situa- 
tion, exclaimed I to my companion, could an English farmer select ! 
Here cattle of every description are cheap ; cows and oxen at two 
years old may be purchased at 30s. or 40s. per head ; excellent horses 
from 60s. to 81. each ; and pigs, poultry, and other live-stock, at a 
price too trifling to mention. Here is land which, under the influence 
of this genial climate, is capable of yielding two-hundred-fold ; here 
is wood in abundance for every purpose ; excellent clay for making 
bricks ; and water at command. Yet all these advantages are lost to 
the present occupiers, who consider them too cheap to be valuable ; 

9 



( 153 ) 



and, perpetually hankering after the precious minerals, seem to think 
that the only standard for estimating the gifts of nature, is the diffi- 
culty of obtaining them. 

Having passed the hamlet of St. Sebastian's, we arrived late in the 
evening at Bordo do Campo, a village consisting of about twenty 
houses, the best of which is that of Captain Rodrigo de Lima, who, 
on learning our situation, kindly took us in for the night. While sup- 
per was preparing, we had some conversation with him respecting the 
agriculture and produce of the neighbourhood, in the course of which 
he paid much attention to our observations, and promised next day 
to shew us the system he pursued. At the repast, which was speed- 
ily announced, he introduced us to his wife and daughter, and a lady 
who was then on a visit to them. This was an unexpected act of 
politeness, and one which had never yet been exercised towards us by 
any master of a family in the whole course of our journey. The few 
females we occasionally saw at any former place generally secluded 
themselves on our arrival and during our stay ; and, when they came 
near us by chance, they commonly ran away in as much apparent 
alarm as if they had been accustomed to be frightened at the name 
of an Englishman. The ladies appeared in very neat dresses of Eng- 
lish manufacture, with a profusion of gold chains about their necks, 
which are always worn on receiving or paying visits. Their conver- 
sation was gay and enlivening, : they were very inquisitive respecting 
the costume of English women, and seemed quite astonished at hear- 
ing that they wore caps, it being never the custom among the Bra- 
zilian females to cover their heads until advanced in years. They 
ornament their hair with combs, frequently of gold, and very richly 
wrought. Wine was introduced, of which the ladies could not be 
prevailed on to partake : they gave our healths by putting the glass 
to their lips. After supper, the table was covered with delicious 
sweet-meats ; when, being desirous of paying the lady of the house a 
compliment, I spoke highly of their excellence, and presumed that 
the fruits were preserved under her immediate direction : but she as- 

x 



( i5a ) 



sured trie to the contrary, and observed that her negra did all that 
sort of domestic work. I perceived, or imagined, that she was rather 
offended at my remark, and therefore apologized by saying, that it 
was not uncommon for the ladies in England to interest themselves 
personally in the concerns of housewifely. The remainder of the 
evening passed off very agreeably. 

On looking out of my chamber- window the following morning, I 
was surprised to see two small and veiy neat inclosures, in one of 
which flax was growing, and in the other wheat. The latter, which 
apparently had been sown about seven weeks, was very poor and un- 
promising : the ground had too much water, and seemed of late to 
have been flooded. Our host regaled us with a breakfast of stewed 
fowl, excellent coffee and milk, and a dish of feijones, with mandioca 
and buttered toast ; after which he conducted us to his inclosures. 

The flax was very healthful and strong : he told us he cut* it three 
or four times a year, and that it was dressed, spun, and woven in his 
own house. He grew but little, having occasion for no more than 
what answered his domestic purposes. The wheat, he told us, was 
blighted. He shewed us a sample of last year's growth, Avhich was 
very poor, coarse, and foul. The mills are of similar construction to 
those used at Canta Gallo, but I did not observe a pair of stones fit 
for the grinding of wheat. 

I now expressed a wish to see his dairy, which the good gentleman 
immediately complied with. Instead of an apartment, such as I ex- 
pected to find, fitted up and kept in order for that sole purpose, I 
was shewn into a kind of dirty store-room, the smell of which was in- 
tolerable. The present, I was told, was not the time for making 
cheese, as the cows gave milk only in the rainy season. I begged to 
see the implements used in the process ; and on examining them 



* In this country the practice of cutting flax is attended with great success, and is pre- 
ferred to that of pulling it, which prevails elsewhere. The fibres, though cut, are considered 
sufficiently long to be spun and made into good common linen. The old roots produce fresh 
shoots incredibly soon. 



( 155 ) 



found, to my utter astonishment, that neither the vats nor cloths had 
been washed since they were last used, and the milk-pails, &c. were in 
the same condition. This sufficiently accounted for the offensive 
smell which I had perceived on entering the place. When I asked 
to see the utensil used for making butter, an apology was made by 
stating that it was not in the way : they had observed my disgust at 
the other vessels, and probably thought that this was equally unfit to 
be inspected. I did all in my power to inform our worthy host of the 
manner in which English dairies were conducted, and gave him se- 
veral directions which he wrote down, but seemed quite indifferent 
about adopting them. On enquiry, I found that no provision 
was made for the cows ; there were no houses erected for milking, 
and that operation was frequently neglected, and at all times badly 
performed. 

The premises bore traces of the industry and taste of the former 
occupants : there was a mud-wall round them, encompassing about 
an acre of ground, which, when perfect, must have given the whole 
a retired and comfortable appearance ; but it was now partly broken 
down and in ruins. The steps leading to the front door of the dwell- 
ing were of the lapis ollaris, or pot-stone, of which substance there is 
a stratum in the vicinity. 

Our cattle being ready, we mounted about eleven in the forenoon, 
returning thanks to our host, and offering to pay for the accommoda- 
tions we had met with ; but the only compensation he required was 
a promise on our part to pass a day or two with him on our return. 
The ladies, who had not appeared at breakfast, came out upon the 
gallery, and very pleasingly and politely wished us a good journey. 

Resuming our route, we passed several small farms, and observed 
that the blight had destroyed all their bananas, and withered their 
coffee-trees. My thermometer at the time was not lower than 52°, but 
thedamage had been done some days before by a sharp southerly wind. 
In some parts of the road there were very small inclosures of flax and 
rye. The country now appeared more open, and the wood-scenery 

x 2 



( 156 ) 



lay at a greater distance. We rode by the side of a barren moun- 
tain, which was covered to an extent of three miles with quartz, and 
produced little or no herbage, except a species of wiry or win die- 
grass, which was much parched by the sun. We descended a decli- 
vity tremendously steep, and full a mile in length, at the bottom of 
which we crossed the Rio das Mortes, here a small rivulet. On its 
further bank is an astallage, or inn, called Registro Velho, (Old Re- 
gister) being originally built as a searching-office, to prevent the 
smuggling of gold. Proceeding hence, the eye is again relieved from 
Confined wood-scenery by the prospect of a grand amphitheatre of 
mountains, which are bounded by others of amazing magnitude, 
covered with forests. On the side of one hill, which we skirted ob- 
liquely, I observed several crystallized masses, which, on examina- 
tion, proved to be clusters of cubes of ferruginous quartz of a dark- 
brown colour. We shortly afterwards arrived at a village called 
Barbasinas, situated on a commanding eminence, in a most fertile 
country, and apparently containing about two hundred dwelling- 
houses. While we stopped to take some refreshment, numbers of the 
inhabitants came to look at us, having never before seen Englishmen, 
and being on the rack of curiosity to know the objects of our jour- 
ney. At this place two great roads from the mining country unite, 
and form the main road to Rio de Janeiro. That to the westward 
leads from St. Joao del Rey, Sahara, and Cuiabd ; the other from 
Villa Rica, Mariana, Villa do Principe, Tejuco, Minas Novas, &c. 
Being a sort of half-way station to the capital, and the last open place 
on the road, it is much frequented by people from various parts of 
the interior, and has a considerable traffic in various articles, parti- 
cularly baizes, cotton goods, salt, and iron. Many of the shops were 
well stocked with English manufactures. The place is governed by 
an Ouvidor, or justice of the peace, and a military officer. In its 
neighbourhood there is a quarry of soft, whitish granite, from which 
rnill-stones are made ; but, from the specimens I saw of it, the mate- 
rial must be very unfit for such a purpose. 



( 157 ) 

We arrived, about, four in the evening, at a poor place called 
Resequinha, the owner of which made every provision for us which 
his scanty means afforded. He dispatched a negro to gather grass 
for the mules, which is here incredibly scarce ; and killed us a fowl 
or two for dinner. The time previous to that meal hung heavy on 
our hands ; there were no birds to afford us an hour's shooting, and 
we had no source of diversion, except that which the lively fancy 
and inexhaustible humour of my companion afforded. We dined 
heartily about seven o'clock on stewed fowls and mandioca, which 
fully supplied the want of bread. That article is so extremely scarce 
in these parts, that even the populous village of Barbasinas, though 
situated in the richest corn-district of the province, could furnish 
us only one rusk. Being overcome with weariness, we prepared 
for rest. One of our beds was placed on the table, the other on a 
dried hide stretched upon the clay floor. These were miserable ac- 
commodations; but sleep knows little distinction between the hovel 
and the palace, and a man thoroughly disposed may enjoy it as 
soundly in one as in the other. So it was with my companion ; he 
was in a profound slumber within five minutes after he had lain 
down, in despite of the rough materials of which his pallet was 
composed. Mine prevented me from sleeping, and compelled me 
to sit up during most of the night; it consisted, as well as his, 
of the leaves of Indian corn crammed into a bag, with the mouth 
tied up ; but the careless negro who performed that operation had 
neglected to pick out the core or pith from which the grain is rubbed 
so that there was no finding an easy posture upon it. I sat 
musing on the absolute wretchedness of every thing around ; a mi- 
serable lamp hung over our heads and threw a dismal glimmer 
through the apartment ; the floor was uneven and broken into holes ; 
the table on which we had dined consisted of one large plank of a 
quality not discoverable without the assistance of a scraper, as it 
had never been cleaned since it was made ; there was not a chair or 
any thing resembling a seat, except an antique bench with a back 

9 



( 158 ) 



to it, fixed at a distance on one side of the table, so that some of 
the guests had to take their repast standing. The very beasts in the 
out-houses were better provided for than the master, if we might 
judge from the healthy condition of those we saw, whose slothful 
apathy could be matched only with that of the swine they fed. 

We left Resequinha an hour after day-break, and entered on some 
clayey ground which caused our mules to come down frequently, as 
they were unshod. The day being Sunday we found some difficulty 
in procuring fresh mules, as they were all engaged in taking their 
masters to mass. After proceeding about a league and a half we 
arrived at the fazenda de Gama, consisting of a good mansion and 
some out-buildings. The house, which is the residence of a major, 
stands on an eminence in a fine open country, beautifully interspersed 
with clumps of trees and small patches of wood, but wholly uncul- 
tivated and destitute of inclosures. The land appeared much burnt 
up, and ill supplied with water, but the valleys, we were told* 
abounded in numerous streams and rivulets. Having stopped at the 
door we were saluted by the voice of a fine motherly-looking lady 
apparently about forty, who invited us to alight, which we readily 
obeyed, having occasion to change our baggage mule. Two young 
ladies, the daughters of the one whom we had first seen, came on 
the gallery to welcome us. As the morning was cool, they were 
covered with purple mantles of baize which left only a part of the 
face exposed, but shewed us sufficient to prove that the females of 
this province, here called mineras, are above mediocrity in personal 
charms. This opinion was confirmed on entering the house, where 
these ladies appeared to much greater advantage ; they were in the 
bloom of health, rather tall in stature, and in their air and gestures 
extremely graceful. We had just entered into conversation when 
in came our soldier to announce that the baggage mule was loaded, 
and that the day was so far spent as barely to allow time enough to 
reach the next station before night. This honest fellow for the first 
time on our journey was the bearer of unwelcome news. I asked 



( 159 ) 



him why he did not bring us to this mansion last night, instead of 
halting at the miserable dog-hole of Resequinha. " Ah Sir," replied 
he, " the mules could travel no further/' " Then you might have 
told us of this delightful place and we would have walked hither had 
it been double the distance." How much more merrily should we 
have passed the evening, thought I, on observing two fine guitars hung 
up in a closet that was accidentally opened. The mother, who now 
came in, gave us an invitation to stop, regretting that her husband, 
being confined by illness to his bed, was unable to pay his respects 
to us in person. We expressed our disappointment at not being 
able to avail ourselves of this invitation, and again related how ill 
we had passed the night at Resequinha. " Yes," observed one of 
the daughters very facetiously, " men alone make very insipid so- 
ciety ; you would have been much better here, would not you ?" 
Our soldier again came to say that the baggage mule was out of 
sight, and that we should be in danger of losing our way. The mule, 
said I, may surely for once fall lame to accommodate us, or some 
lucky misfortune may occur to give us a pretext for prolonging our 
stay. We were at length obliged to yield to the pressing remon- 
strances of our soldier, and took leave of the good lady and her 
amiable daughters, promising to visit them on our return. We pur- 
sued our journey, with reluctance, over a dreary tract of country, 
passing at intervals through small woods, where we shot a few wood- 
peckers, here called carpinteros, a name sufficiently characteristic 
of their peculiar habits. The incessant hacking which they make 
with their beaks may be heard at considerable distance. No inci- 
dent worth mentioning occurred in this day's journey, which ter- 
minated at Bandera de Coelho, where we arrived at sun-set. A 
more dirty and slovenly place, in a finer situation, we never vi- 
sited. It was with great difficulty that my negro-boy procured us 
a pot of any sort to dress us a fowl and some beans for supper. 
The kitchen was a mere dirt-hole, blackened with soot and smoke 
above and all around, and covered with mud and filth below : the 



( m ) 



cooking utensil was a pot placed on three stones and heated by a 
fire of green wood. The owner was very assiduous in helping us, 
and heartily desired us to make free. He was reputed to be a man 
of considerable property, which he had accumulated by selling corn 
for the troops of mules which frequently stop here, and are gene- 
rally better accomodated than his biped guests. We procured some- 
thing in the form of a supper, and passed the night under the same 
sort of shed as that which sheltered our cattle, and on bedding very 
little superior in quality to theirs. 

The experience of this night completed the catalogue of incon- 
veniences to which we had been exposed since the commencement 
of our journey. I would advise every traveller who pursues the same 
route, to provide himself with bed and blankets, a stock of tea, 
sugar, candles, liquors, soap, and salt, two kettles and a drinking- 
horn (for in few places will he meet with any of these articles), as 
well as an umbrella, which can by no means be dispensed with. The 
whole of this equipage is necessary for each person who travels to 
make observations on the country, and will require at least two 
baggage mules to carry it. 

We set out next morning at six, without breakfast, not being 
able to procure either coffee or milk ; and proceeding six miles 
through a fine open country, arrived at a large village called Louza, 
containing full two thousand inhabitants. It is well built, but as 
I was informed, has much declined from its former consequence, 
which it owed principally to the rich mines in its vicinity now al- 
most exhausted. We procured a tolerable breakfast of coffee and 
eggs at a vend ; and, while we partook of it, were much amused by 
the numbers of inhabitants, who crowded the door in eager curio- 
sity to see us, asking a variety of questions of a political nature, 
and forming endless conjectures respecting the object of our journey. 

Leaving this village about eleven o'clock, we proceeded along a 
range of mountains composed of argillaceous schistus, and passed a 
hill covered with micaceous iron ore ; in one part of it there was a 



( 161 ) 



break that shewed the stratum (which appeared perpendicular) of 
ferruginous matter, or probably it was a strong vein which traversed 
the mountain. I was not a little surprised to find that the road, for 
above half a mile, was covered with rich iron-ore. 

We passed a place called Alto de Virginia, where, as well as in 
the vicinity, to a considerable extent, there are gold-washings, which 
bear the general name of Labras de Virginia. I examined the heaps 
of debris, but found in them nothing but rounded quartz and ferru- 
ginous matter. Journeying half a league further, we came to the 
gold-washings of St. Antonio de Oro Branco, where hillocks of the 
same materials abounded ; and we soon afterwards entered the poor 
and almost deserted village of the same name, containing about five 
hundred souls. We had an interview with the commandant, but 
could obtain nothing in the way of refreshment; indeed the few people 
we saw were so needy, that far from being able to supply our wants, 
they seemed to crave all we had to satisfy their own, and eyed us 
as if they expected we had brought them something. Glad to get 
away from this wretched place, we continued our journey through a 
succession of fine valleys, and arrived about four o'clock at the foot 
of a tremendous mountain, overhung with clouds. The ascent was 
so steep that, judging it in vain to attempt to ride, I dismounted; 
our soldier, who was a lighter man than myself, exchanged mules 
with me, and up we went in a zig-zag direction for half an hour, when 
we found ourselves immersed in a thick cloud, which for some time 
hindered us from seeing our way. We were at length able to pro- 
ceed, and in many parts had to mount up ledges nearly two feet 
perpendicular, which we performed without alighting, as our saddles 
were secured from slipping off behind by a strong strap passing 
round the mule's neck. It is considered very unsafe to dismount in 
these ascents, for the animals go much less steady when led than 
when ridden. At seven o'clock we reached the summit, where, 
though night was setting in, we found it necessary to rest half an 
hour, and then proceeded a league in the dark without our baggage 

y 



( 162 ) 



mule, which, being unable to keep pace with us, had been left in 
charge of two of our men and the negro-boj. We were under 
little apprehension for the safety of our property, though, as we 
afterwards learnt, the poor animal was down above twenty times 
in the course of the ascent. About eight o'clock we reached 
Alto do Moro, our baggage arriving about an hour after. Here we 
halted for the night in one of the best inns we had hitherto seen, 
the hostess of which soon provided us with a comfortable supper, of 
which we partook very heartily and passed an agreeable evening. 
The good order and propriety which reigned in this inn confirmed an 
observation we had often made, that of all houses on the road those 
under the direction of females were managed with most ability, and 
certainly afforded the best accommodations. I may add, that there 
prevailed in them that evident disposition and wish to oblige which 
generally makes up for any deficiency, and by appealing to a 
stranger's liberality makes him satisfied with whatever is set before 
him. 

The land, through which we this day passed, appeared much 
burnt up, being in general very bare of vegetable soil, and having 
few trees to defend it against the heat of the sun. In the mountains 
we observed several slips or breaks which presented abrupt and sin- 
gular masses lying in all directions like confused heaps of archi- 
tectural ruins, disclosing veins of soft talc, and some cascalhao poor 
in gold. The stratum was argillaceous schistus, very ferruginous, 
and friable. At. the bottom of these slips, which appeared to be 
caused by the disrupture of one part of the mountain from the other 
(probably through the infiltration of water), there were small streams 
which in rainy weather swell into torrents, and burst through their 
channels with great velocity. 

The next day, it being our intention to reach Villa Rica before 
night, we set out at an early hour, notwithstanding the cold cloudy 
weather and the heavy dew which prevailed. We passed through a 
bare and uneven tract.of country, presenting similar characteristics to 



( 163 ) 

those above described. Near a place called Capon, I rode down a 
hill covered with rich iron ore in such profusion that tons might have 
been gathered from the surface. Proceeding a short distance farther 
we arrived at a house, the owner of which, we afterwards understood, 
possessed a topaz-mine in the neighbourhood. The mention of a 
mine of topazes excited my curiosity, as it gave me the idea of a 
vein worked under-ground, and containing those substances in the 
matrix as originally formed. On expressing to the owner my desire 
to see the works, he kindly undertook to accompany me to the spot. 
After walking about half a mile up the mountain just mentioned, I 
was shewn two breaks or slips y in which my guide informed me were 
the topaz mines. We entered one of them, which was in extent 
little short of two acres ; the argillaceous schistus, which formed the 
upper stratum, appeared in a variety of stages, the greater part 
migrating into micaceous schistus. In one part I observed two 
negroes poking in the little soft veins, which the slips disclosed, with 
a piece of rusty iron, probably part of an old hoop ; and on en- 
quiring what they were about, I was informed they were the miners, 
searching for topazes. I took one of their instruments, and on using 
it as they did, found these veins to contain a very minute micaceous 
substance approaching to earthy talc, also some quartz, and large 
crystals of specular iron ore. I had the good fortune to find two or 
three topazes, which, as they had only one pyramid each, and ap- 
peared fractured, I judged to be out of their original place. It had 
hitherto been my opinion, that all the topazes which I had seen at 
Rio de Janeiro, or elsewhere, and which were of similar form to 
these, had been broken from the matrix by the miners ; I now, there- 
fore fully expected to meet with some having double pyramids, but 
to my great disappointment all that I found were entirely detached. 
From a great quantity (at least a cart load) of inferior topazes, 
which were afterwards shewn to me in the owners house, (and any 
number of which I might have taken away,) I could not select one 
with a double pyramid. They informed me that sometimes, but 

y 2 



( 164 ) 



very rarely, topazes had been found in quartz crystals, but even in 
these instances the quartz appeared fractured and out of its original 
place*. The topazes which were shewn me, were very imperfect, 
and full of flaws. The negroes employed in these works were super- 
intended by two Creolians who received what they found. 

After I had collected a variety of specimens, we returned to our 
mules, continued our journey over bleak and sterile mountains, 
through roads covered with dust, and arrived about three o'clock in 
sight of Villa Rica. Though the town stands on an eminence rather 
steep and lofty, the approach to it is not noble or striking, neither 
is there any thing in a near view of it, which, to the eye of a tra- 
veller, corresponds with the grandeur of its name. The environs, 
unlike those of opulent towns in general, exhibited few signs of 
cultivation ; not an acre of good pasture was any where to be seen, 
nor an inclosure of any kind. We arrived a little after four, and 
alighted at one of the first houses to the left, on entering the town ; 
it had been recommended to us as one of the best inns, but we 
found that, in point of cleanliness and accommodation, report had 
greatly over-rated it. The owner, being a priest, entrusted the 
entire management to a mulatto, who acted as if he was seldom 
under the eye of his master. Having ordered dinner we walked 
into the town for about a mile ; the streets were very irregular, and 
so badly paved as to give us no favourable idea of the opulence of 
the inhabitants. As night was coming on, and we felt fatigued, we 
postponed delivering our letters until next day, and returned to our 
inn. Our dinner, which was served up in as slovenly a manner as 
we had ever witnessed, even in the poorest rancho on the road, 
consisted of some stewed beef and a fowl. The bread was tolerable, 
but dear. Being little inclined to sit up after our repast, we re- 



# They also informed me that green topazes were sometimes found, which I very much 
doubted. If any substance of that colour, resembling topaz, did occur, it was most probably 
JSuclase, which may be easily mistaken for it. 



( 165 ) 



tired early to rest; our rooms, though destitute of almost every ap- 
propriate convenience, were better than those to which we had of 
late been accustomed. 

Notwithstanding the fatigue of the journey, which heartily dis- 
posed me to sleep, my mind was for some time occupied in reflect- 
ing on the place at which we had now arrived, and which had long 
been the theme of our wonder and conjecture. Villa Rica — the 
rich village! The capital of the province of Minas Geraes, and the 
seat of its Government; a place which had for many years been re- 
puted the richest in Brazil, as to it was brought all the gold found 
in the vast district around. Impatient to see some vestiges of 
that splendor which its name implies, I slept but little, and rose at 
an early hour. We, with difficulty, obtained our breakfast, con- 
sisting of coffee and eggs, with bread and English butter, after 
which we dressed and went to deliver our letters. 

Our arrival being announced, we were directed to present ourselves 
at the audience-chambers, which form part of a large edifice, con- 
taining also the Post-office and other public rooms for the transac- 
tion of Government business. We were introduced to the General 
of the Forces, and to Dr. Lucas, Judge of the Supreme Court, the 
latter held the principal authority in the absence of the Viceroy 
who was gone to Rio de Janeiro, another from Goyazes being ex- 
pected shortly to succeed him. We were honoured with a most 
handsome reception, and various houses were put in our choice, 
with a kind invitation to make use of any of them during our stay, 
but we preferred taking lodgings in the centre of the town, within 
three minutes walk of the Palace, in Rua de Dereito, the very 
Bond Street of Villa Rica. 

After our interview with the Judge, we devoted some hours to a 
perambulation of the town, and returned much fatigued to dine at 
our inn. In the evening I paid a visit to the vicar, who gave me a 
hearty welcome, and in the usual style of Portugueze compliment 
told me his house was mine. The saying, had it been verified, 

9 



( 166 ) 



would have put me in possession of one of the best mansions in Villa 
Rica. At tea the worthy pastor introduced me to several officers, 
among whom was the late governor of the Diamond district, who gave 
me much information concerning it and shewed me an aqua marina, 
which had been found in one of the washings. It was a perfect 
hexagonal prism, full seven inches in length and three quarters of 
an inch in diameter, clear and free from flaws. After some hours of 
very agreeable conversation, the party broke up, and it being dark, 
I was conducted to my inn by a servant of the vicar's, with his 
lantern. At the corners of the streets, along which we passed, there 
were groups of the lower order of people offering their prayers ; in 
a niche above them was a figure of the Virgin, with tapers burning 
before it. A voice in a low solemn tone uttered the vespers, the 
responses were made by the multitude. I took off my hat as I 
passed, knowing that such a token of reverence is always expected. 

The next day was occupied chiefly in removing our equipage to 
our new lodgings in Rua de Dereito ; to this service our soldiers 
were particularly attentive, and left us nothing to do which they 
could do for us. On the day following we were honoured with visits 
from the judge, the general, the vicar, and many of the principal 
inhabitants, all of whom testified their respect for us in the most 
polite manner. Many of them afterwards sent me presents of fine 
sugar, coffee, sweet-meats, cheese, and some good bread. One 
gentleman, to give me a proof of the richness of the soil and salu- 
brity of the climate, sent me a cabbage, full fourteen inches in dia- 
meter, when stripped of its outside leaves ; a finer vegetable never 
was produced. 

When our leisure permitted, we took excursions to view the town 
and its vicinity, sometimes on horseback and sometimes on foot, 
generally going and returning in a different direction. It is situated 
on the side of a large mountain, connected with others forming an 
immense chain, of which it is one of the highest. Most of the 
streets range, in steps, as it were, from the base to the summit, and 



( 167 ) 



are crossed by others which lead up the acclivity. It is most ad- 
mirably supplied with water, which is conducted into almost every 
house in a most convenient and pleasant manner. In the streets are 
many fountains, which, though not to be compared with those of 
Italy in architectural taste, are well constructed. One cistern in 
particular contained water which tasted strongly of sulphate of iron ; 
the natives consider it serviceable in the cure of cutaneous diseases, 
and frequently bathe in it. The town is divided into two parishes, 
and contains a population of about twenty thousand inhabitants, of 
whom there are more whites than blacks. The climate is delightful, 
and perhaps equal to that of Naples. Though the latitude of the 
place is only 20° South, yet owing to its elevated site, the tem- 
perature of the air is generally moderate. The thermometer never 
exceeds 82° in the shade and is rarely below 48°, but its usual range 
is from (54° to 80° in summer, and from 48° to 70° in winter. The 
greatest heats prevail in January. Owing to its great elevation 
various changes from heat to cold prevail in the same day, and there 
are frequent showers of rain. Thunder-storms are common, but by 
no means violent. The sun is sometimes clouded by dews and mist 
so dense as not to subside until the forenoon is far advanced. 

The gardens here are laid out with great taste, and from the pe- 
culiarity of their construction present a curious spectacle. As there 
is scarcely a piece of level ground, even ten yards square, on the 
whole side of the mountain, the defect has been remedied by 
cutting spaces one above another at regular distances, and sup- 
porting them by low walls, the top of one being on a level with 
base of that next above it. An easy flight of steps leads from one 
level to the other. These terraces seemed to me to be the very king- 
dom of Flora, for never did I before see such a profusion of delicate 
flowers. Here were also excellent vegetables of every kind, such 
as artichokes, asparagus, spinach, cabbage, kidney-beans, and po- 
tatoes. There are many indigenous fruits which might be much 
improved by a better system of horticulture. The peach appears 



( 168 ) 



to be the only exotic fruit which has been hitherto introduced ; it 
flourishes amazingly. I have frequently seen tlje branches of the 
trees so loaded as to require perpendicular support. 

The town is of considerable extent, but by no means so well 
peopled as when the mines were rich. Few of the inhabitants have 
any employment except the shopkeepers, who are indeed a nume- 
rous class. English woollens were by no means dear, superfine cloth 
being at 30s. to 35s, per yard, coatings, &c. nearly as cheap as in 
England; common cotton prints at Is. 6d. to 2s. per yard ; hats, 
handkerchiefs, kerseymeres, and Manchester piece goods in great 
plenty. There seemed indeed to be a glut of English merchandize 
and produce of all sorts, except earthenware, hams, porter, and 
butter, which were dear on account of the risk of carriage. Com- 
mon Figueras wine was at 3s. 6d. the bottle. The shops that sold 
the produce of the country were few in number and very indifferent. 
There were a great many taylors, shoe-makers, tin-workers, and 
venders of hardware, some smiths, and no inconsiderable number of 
saddlers. In a country where every one is a horseman, this trade 
must, one would imagine, take the lead of most others. The 
saddles that were shewn me here were of a much superior make to 
those which I saw in Rio de Janeiro. I was surprised to find no 
workers in gold in a place so renowned for the production of that 
precious metal, but I was informed that the trade was prohibited by 
law, to prevent the gold from being worked before it was permuted. 

The market of Villa Rica was but ill supplied, notwithstanding 
the fertility of the district around it. Pulse and vegetables for the 
table were scarce, even grass was an article in great demand *, and 
milk was as dear as it is in London. Poultry sold at from 3s. 6d. 
to 4s. 66. per couple. Beef of a tolerable kind, but by no means 
good, might be had at lid. per pound. Pork was very fine ; mutton 



Our mules required at least six-pennyworth each per day, exclusive of their corn. 



( 169 ) 



was utterly unknown. Tallow was exceedingly dear, and candles 
were at more than double the price at which they £ell in this 
country. 

Though our arrival in the town excited some surprise, as we 
were the first of our nation who had visited it, yet the people did 
not regard us entirely as strangers, many of them having seen 
Englishmen in their frequent intercourse with Rio de Janeiro. My 
worthy companion had letters to some of the principal shopkeepers, 
which we took an early opportunity of delivering. When we spoke 
to them of the richness of the country, and of the quantity of gold 
with which it was reputed to abound, they seemed glad of the op- 
portunity of telling us, that they believed the gold was all sent to 
England, adding that their town ought now to be termed Villa 
Pobre, instead of Villa Rica. Indeed we were surprised to ob- 
serve the comparative poverty which prevailed among them. Of 
above two thousand habitations, which the town contained, a con- 
siderable proportion were untenanted ; and the rents of the rest were 
continually lowering. Houses were to be purchased at one half 
their real value ; for instance, a house built a few years ago at 10001. 
cost, would not now sell for more than 5001. 

The mountain on which the town stands, appeared to me in length 
from eight to nine miles, in every part narrow and almost insulated, 
being surrounded by deep ravines. In riding over it in various di- 
rections, I observed it to be composed of argillaceous schistus in 
almost every gradation, migrating from the compact blue slate into 
micaceous schistus. In some parts it lies in regular laminae, in 
others it appears in confused masses. The slate is sometimes, but 
not very generally, used for paving, roofing, and other similar pur- 
poses. In some parts I noticed a few slender, confused, and 
irregular quartzose veins of little consequence, a large proportion of 
ferruginous accumulations and conglomerations, together with mar- 
tial pyrites, and a considerable quantity of rounded quartz of all 
sizes. That side on which the town is built presents many small 

z 



( 170 ) 



hills, which form a number of gulleys in narrow ravines. Numerous 
streamlets flow down from the springs in the mountain in various 
channels, and in rainy weather swell into cascades; they form a stream 
at its base called Rio del Carmen, which in its course from hence 
is joined by many others, and changes its name first into that of Rio 
St. Jose, and then into Rio Doce. Of the latter I shall have occa- 
sion in the sequel to speak more at large. 



( 171 ) 



CHAP. XI. 



Origin and present State of Villa Rica. — Account of the Mint. — 
Visit to the City of Mariana. — Excursion to the Fazendas of Barro 
and Castro, belonging to His Excellency the Condi de Linhares. 

HPHE history of an establishment which, twenty years after its 



foundation, was reputed the richest place on the globe, was an 
object of considerable interest with me, and I made many inquiries 
respecting it from some of the best informed men on the spot. It ap- 
pears that the first discovery of this once rich mountain was effected 
by the enterprising spirit of the Paulistas, who, of all the colonists in 
Brazil, retained the largest share of that ardent and indefatigable 
zeal for discovery which characterized the Lusitaniansl of former 
days. They penetrated from their capital into these regions, braving 
every hardship, and encountering every difficulty which a savage 
country, infested by still more savage inhabitants, opposed to them. 
They cut their way through impervious woods, carrying their pro- 
visions with them, and occasionally cultivating small patches of land 
to afford them food to retreat to, in case of necessity, as well as to 
keep up a communication with their city, St. Paul's. Every inch 
of ground was disputed by the barbarous Indians, here called 
Bootocoodies, who were constantly either attacking them openly or 
lying in ambush, and but too frequently succeeded in surprising 
some of them, or their negroes, whom they immediately sacrificed 
to their horrible appetite for human flesh. They believed the ner 
groes to be the great monkeys of the wood. The bones of the un- 
fortunate sufferers were frequently found exposed, shocking testi- 
monies of the barbarity of their murderers, whom the Paulistas, 




z 2 



( 172 ) 



roused to revenge, invariably shot, wherever they met them. 
These examples of vengeance answered their desired end ; the 
Indians, terrified as well by the noise as by the fatal effect of the 
fire-arms, fled with precipitation, believing that the white men com* 
manded lightning and thunder. 

It does not appear that in exploring this territory they received 
any assistance whatever from the Aborigines ; they followed the 
course of rivers, occasionally finding gold, of which they skimmed 
the surface, and continued to proceed until they arrived at the. 
mountain which is our present subject. Its riches arrested their 
course ; they immediately erected temporary houses and began their 
operations. The principal men of the party that first settled here, 
were Antonio Dias, Bartholomew Rocinho, Antonio de Ferrera (filho), 
and Garcia Ruis. It appears that they took the most direct way 
to the place, for the roads they then opened are the same which are 
still used. The fame of their success soon reached the city of 
St. Paul's ; fresh adventurers arrived in great numbers, bringing with 
them all the negroes they had means to purchase. Other adven- 
turers went from St. Paul's to Rio de Janeiro to procure more ne- 
groes, their own city; being drained; and thus the news of the lately 
discovered gold-mountain being made known in the Brazilian capital, 
men of all descriptions went in crowds to this land of promise by the 
way of St. Paul's, which was the only route then known. The first 
settlers might have prevented the exposure of their good fortune, 
had they been able to moderate their joy, and consented to act in 
concert; but as gold was in such great abundance, every individual 
appropriated a lot of ground, and thus became a capitalist. Each 
strove which should make the most of his treasure in the shortest 
time, and thus there was a continual demand for more negroes, more 
iron, &c. and, in the general eagerness to obtain them, the secret 
which all were interested in keeping was disclosed. The Paulistas, 
independent in spirit, and proud of their wealth, were desirous of 
giving laws to the new-comers ; but the latter determining to oppose 



{ 173 ) 



this measure, formed themselves into a party under the guidance of 
Manuel Nunez Viana, an adventurer of some consequence, who 
strenuously asserted their claim to equal rights and advantages. 
Disputes arose on both sides, and were at length aggravated into 
hostilities, which proved unfavourable to the Paulistas, the greater 
part of whom fled to a considerable station of their own, and 
there awaited reinforcements. Viana and his followers, without loss 
of time, went in pursuit of their foes, whom they found on a plain 
near the site of St. Joao del Rey. The two parties met on the bor- 
ders of a river, and a sanguinary battle took place, which ended in 
the defeat of the Paulistas, who afterwards made the best terms they 
could. The slain were buried on the margin of the river, which, from 
that circumstance, took the name of Rio das Mortes. 

The Paulistas, bent on revenge, but weakened by defeat, appealed 
to the sovereign, King Pedro, denouncing Viana and his followers as 
rebels who were attempting to take the district to themselves, and 
set up an independent government. The King's ministers, apprized 
of the state of affairs, and learning by report the immense riches of 
the country, immediately sent a chief, with a competent body of 
troops, to take advantage of the strife between the two parties; 
which, in a country tenable by a few men on account of its nume- 
rous strong-holds, was a most fortunate circumstance. The name of 
this chief was Albuquerque ; a man of enterprize and perseverance, 
in all respects qualified for the service on which he was sent. His 
appearance at first occasioned much confusion and discontent among 
both parties ; and though he was not openly opposed, yet he was in 
continual alarm. The Paulistas now saw that the riches which they 
in conjunction with their rivals might have retained, were about to 
be seized by a third party which would reduce them both to subor- 
dination. Disturbances prevailed for some time, but reinforcements 
continually arriving from Government, tranquillity was at length 
perfectly established ; and in the year 1711 a regular town began to 
be formed ; a government-house, a mint, and a depdt for arms were 



( 174 ) 



built. A code of laws was enacted for the regulation of the mines ; 
all gold-dust found was ordered to be delivered to officers appointed 
for that purpose ; a fifth in weight was taken for the King, and the 
remaining four -parts were purified, melted into ingots at the expence 
of Government, then assayed, marked according to their value, and 
delivered to the owners, with a certificate to render them current. 
For the greater convenience of trade, gold-dust was likewise permit- 
ted to circulate for small payments. Notwithstanding these strict 
regulations, a considerable quantity of the precious metal in its ori- 
ginal state found its way to Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, and other ports, 
clandestinely, without paying the royal fifth, until Government, ap- 
prized of this illicit traffic, established registers in various parts for 
the examination of all passengers, and stationed soldiers to patrole 
the roads. By these means, gold in immense quantities was seized 
and confiscated ; the persons on whom any was found forfeited all 
their property, and, unless they had friends of great influence, were 
sent as convicts to Africa for life. The greatest disgrace was at- 
tached to the name of smuggler; and such was the rigour of the law 
against offenders of this description, that every person quitting the 
district was obliged to take a certificate stating whither he was going, 
and what he carried with him. This regulation is still in force, and 
is rigorously observed. 

Villa Rica soon enjoyed a considerable trade with Rio de Janeiro; 
the returns were negroes, iron, woollens, salt, provisions of various 
kinds* and wine, all which at that time bore amazingly high profits. 

About the year 1713, when Dr. Bras de Silvia was appointed 
governor, the quantity of gold produced was so considerable that 
the royal fifth amounted to half a million sterling annually. The 
mountain became pierced like a honey-comb, as the miners worked 
every soft part they could find, and penetrated as far as they could, 
conveying the eascalhao which they dug out to a convenient place for 
washing. In rainy weather the torrents of water running down the 
sides of the mountain, carried away much earthy matter containing 



C 175 ) 



delicate particles of gold, which settled in the ground near its base. 
When the waters abated, this rich deposit gave employment to num- 
bers of the poorer sort of people, who took it away and washed it at 
their convenience. 

Antonio Dias, the person already mentioned as one of the, leaders 
of the Paulistas, who discovered the place, having become extremely 
rich, built a fine church, and dying soon after, bequeathed to it con- 
siderable funds. It still bears his name. Five or six others were 
begun and soon finished, as neither wood nor stone was wanting, 
and the inhabitants were all ready to contribute a share of their pro- 
perty, and to employ their negroes in furtherance of these pious 
works. A law highly creditable to the wisdom, of the Portugueze 
government was now enacted, to prohibit friars, from entering the ter- 
ritory of the mines. What treasures were thus , saved , to the state, 
and what a number of persons were. thus continued in useful labour, 
who would else have become burthensome.to the community ! 

The town now underwent many improvements ; its, streets were 
more regularly built, and some parts of the side of the mountain were 
levelled to afford more .convenient room for; the construction of houses, 
and the laying out of gardens. , Reservoirs, were formed, from which 
water was distributed by means of conduits to all parts, and public 
fountains were erected in the most convenient and central situations. 
The mint and smelting- houses were enlarged, and rendered more com- 
modious for the transaction of business. About this period the inha- 
bitants amounted to twelve thousand or upwards ; those who posses- 
sed mines were either the first settlers or their descendants, and as the 
best part of the district was occupied, the new adventurers who con- 
tinued to arrive from time to time were obliged to enter into the ser- 
vice of the existing owners until they had learned their methods of 
working, after which they generally went in search of fresh mines, 
proceeding along the water-courses and ravines, where they some- 
times discovered new sources of wealth. Between the years 1730 
and 1750 the mines were in the height of their prosperity ; the King's 

9 



4 m ) 



fifth during some years of that period is said to have amounted to at 
least a million sterling annually. 

The mines which produced this immense wealth at length became 
gradually less abundant; and, as the precious metal disappeared, num- 
bers of the miners retired, some to the mother-country, loaded with 
riches, which tempted fresh adventurers, and many to Rio de Ja- 
neiro and other sea-ports, where they employed their large capitals 
in commerce. 

Villa Rica at the present day scarcely retains a shadow of its for- 
mer splendour. Its inhabitants, with the exception of the shop- 
keepers, are void of employment ; they totally neglect the fine coun- 
try around them, which, by proper cultivation, would amply com- 
pensate for the loss of the wealth which their ancestors drew from 
its bosom. Their education, their habits, their hereditary prejudices, 
alike unfit them for active life ; perpetually indulging in visionary 
prospects of sudden wealth, they fancy themselves exempted from that 
universal law of nature which ordains that man shall live by the sweat 
ofhitfjbrow. In contemplating the fortunes accumulated by their pre- 
decessors, they overlook the industry and perseverance which ob- 
tained them, and entirely lose sight of the change of circumstances 
which renders those qualities now doubly necessary. The successors 
of men who rise to opulence from small beginnings seldom follow 
the example set before them, even when trained to it ; how then 
should a Creolian, reared in idleness and ignorance, feel any thing of 
the benefits of industry ! His negroes constitute his principal pro- 
perty, and them he manages so ill, that the profits of their labour 
hardly defray the expences of their maintenance : in the regular 
course of nature they become old and unable to work, yet he con- 
tinues in the same listless and slothful way, or sinks into a state of ab- 
solute inactivity, not knowing what to do from morning to night. 
This deplorable degeneracy is almost the universal characteristic of 
the descendants of the original settlers ; every trade is occupied 
either by mulattoes or negroes, both of which classes seem supe- 



( 177 ) 



rior in intellect to their masters, because thej make a better use 
of it. 

During my stay here I paid frequent visits to the mint, and was 
liberally permitted by the officers to see every process performed 
there. Jn the smelting-house were eight or ten small blast-furnaces, 
in form much resembling blacksmiths' hearths. The fuel used is 
charcoal. When a quantity of gold-dust is brought, (no matter 
whether large or small,) say, for instance, six ounces, it is first per- 
muted, and a fifth taken for the Prince ; the rest is put into a Hes- 
sian crucible about three inches in diameter, which is immediately 
placed in the furnace. A quantity of corrosive sublimate is then 
put to it, which, on being heated, exhales very strong fumes ; the 
scoriae, if any be formed, are taken off with a pair of tongs, and 
more sublimate is added if required. Ebullition sometimes occurs, 
in which case the crucible is covered with a bit of common tile. 
As soon as the mercury is evaporated, the gold is poured into an in- 
got-mould, previously rubbed with animal fat; it is afterwards 
turned out into a tub of water. The ingot generally, in some part 
or other, has mercury attached to it, which it seizes immediately, 
and the part of the gold thus affected assumes the appearance of 
lead *. To remove this, they hold it in a strong fire with a pair of 
tongs until the mercury is evaporated. It is afterwards sent to the 
assay-master, who first compares it on the touchstone with gold bars 
of different alloys, ascertained and marked, and then assays it. The 
two methods being found to agree, the assay-master stamps upon 
the ingot its degree of fineness, (called toque,) also its weight, its 
number, the name of the place, and the year. It is then registered 
in a book kept for that purpose, and a copy of the entry is made 
out on a slip of paper, in which the ingot is wrapped, and delivered 



* In England I once knew an instance in which an ingot with mercury thus adhering to 
it, in the possession of a person ignorant of metallurgy, was sold at a reduced price, as if the 
discoloured part had really been lead ; the purchaser also supposing that to be the case. 

A A 



I 178 ) 



to the owner for circulation. The operation of melting a given 
quantity seldom occupies more than ten minutes or a quarter of an 
hour ; that of cupelling about double the time : but I have seen 
men deliver their gold-dust, and receive it in a circulating form in 
less than an hour; so that little delay takes place, and as there are 
six furnaces, the bringers of gold. have seldom to wait for their turn. 
The pale colour and low quality of various bars of gold are always 
imputed to the silver, platina, or other metal contained in them. I 
have seen some as low as sixteen carats, and others as fine as 
carats, which is within half a carat of what is denominated 
pure gold. Twenty-two is the standard, and gold exceeding that 
Teceives a premium according to its fineness. 

Considerable quantities of arsenical pyrites, said to be cobalt, 
were brought to me : I examined some specimens with the blow- 
pipe, but found no vestige of that metal, as the substance in no stage 
imparted a blue colour to borax or glass. Martial pyrites is found 
about three miles from the town, where there is a very strong vein 
of it in quartz. Antimony was brought to me from some distance, 
and also a few bits of copper much oxidated, which were said to 
have been found in the washings at a town called Caldrones, but 
this I had great reason to doubt. Not a few impositions respecting 
the discovery of copper were attempted upon me. One man 
brought a rounded piece of jasper, about an ounce in weight, and 
with it half an ounce of copper, of the form and about the size of a 
duck-shot, which he told me had been produced by smelting a stone 
similar to the jasper then before me. I with much difficulty per- 
suaded him that the person who had performed the operation for 
him had dropped a copper coin into the crucible. I was astonished 
to find that many persons, even gentlemen of some consequence, had 
a notion that almost every red-coloured stone in the pavement of 
the streets was copper. One fellow had circulated a report that he 
possessed several pieces rich in that metal ; but, on being sent for, 
and questioned closely, he stated that he had lost them in removing 

9a a 



( 179 ) 



to another house. It is not surprising that tales of this kind should 
gain easy credit among persons stimulated by avarice and blinded 
by ignorance, and that the artful men who invent and propagate 
them, should be tempted by success to repeat their impositions, and 
corrupt others by their example. The rich iron ores with which the 
district abounds, and of which I saw many specimens, might furnish 
employment much more profitable than washing for gold, or follow- 
ing other idle and chimerical speculations. 

During the first few days of my residence here, my soldiers pro- 
cured me a quantity of the finest porcelain clay I have ever seen ; 
that used in the manufactory at Sevres near Paris is inferior to it. 
It is found at the foot of a mountain of argillaceous schistus, called 
San Antonio, near Cangones do Campo, in a vein accompanied with 
quartz and specular iron ore. 

A week after my arrival here, I was invited to go to a pottery 
about three miles distant. Crossing a bridge over the Rio del Car- 
men, at the foot of the town of Villa Rica, we ascended another 
steep mountain, on the summit of which I found iron ore in great 
quantities. Though not very rich, I have no doubt it would pro- 
duce 25 per cent, of metal. The want of wood, which is here com- 
plained of as an objection to working it, might be remedied by 
planting ; for this summit is a fine plain which proper cultivation 
would render highly productive. At present, though so near the 
town, it lies totally neglected, without a single inclosure upon it. 
The pottery, at which we soon arrived, has been but recently 
established. The clay is used in its native state, without any ad- 
mixture, and is cleared of its coarse particles by washing. After 
the water has been let off and evaporated so as to leave it of a 
sufficient consistency, it is put on the wheel and formed into plates, 
mugs, jars, &c. which are bulky and heavy, but by no means strong. 
They are rendered less fragile by being covered with an excellent 
thick glazing. The furnaces have no chimneys, but consist merely 
of a low arch in which are several vent holes. The glazing furnace 

A A 2 



( 180 ) 



is reverberatory, but it is so ill constructed as to destroy much fuel 
and produce little heat. Throughout the whole district there is fine 
coarse clay for bricks, tiles, &c. 

I was here invited to taste some wine, made from grapes grown 
on the spot, which was excellent. A more happy situation than 
this vicinity affords for the growth of fruits of every kind can 
scarcely be imagined. The pear, the olive, and the mulberry would 
thrive here equally well with the grape, if proper pains were taken 
with them. A skilful agriculturist would with great ease, I am cer- 
tain, bring it into such a state of improvement as to serve the 
double purpose of a corn and dairy farm ; excellent wheat might 
be grown, and a certain quantity of the land kept under artificial 
grasses for cutting. A fine stream of water runs through the whole, 
with a sufficient fall to turn mills. 

The principles of husbandry seem as little understood here as in 
any part of the territory through which we had hitherto travelled. 
Perhaps there is no country on the globe where the vicissitudes of 
plenty and scarcity do not prevail, and where human experience has 
not shewn the necessity of laying by a store in time of abundance, 
as a provision for a season of famine ; but here this salutary prac- 
tice is almost wholly disregarded. The cattle are turned out on the 
unenclosed tracts*, and left to subsist on whatever they can find. 
In the summer months, when the grass throughout the wide extent 
is burnt up, they flock to the margins of the rivulets as their last 
resource, which soon fails. Numbers of them die of famine, and 
those that survive the season are so exhausted and weakened that 
they seldom thoroughly recover. 

A small mount in the vicinity of this pottery presented much 
ferruginous matter, and a substance that appeared to me barytes 
in a mamillary form, a specimen of which I took with me. Since 



* The finest parts of these tracts, in the best season, are by no means so rich in grass as 
an English meadow. 



C 181 ) 



my return to England it has been proved by the analysis of the 
eminent Dr. Wollaston to be hydrargylite without fluoric acid. 

During my stay at Villa Rica, I rode to the city of Mariana, 
distant eight miles, by a tremendous and almost impassable road, 
along a ridge of mountains ; and afterwards went thither by the 
general road which passes between two high hills, and for some 
distance along the river side, all the way on the descent. The 
margins of the Rio del Carmen, which runs through the town, have 
been washed the whole way from Villa Rica, parties from which 
place held possesion of this settlement as early as the year 1710, 
claiming it on account of the gold brought down from thence by the 
current of the river. It was made a bishop's see about the year 
1715, and was called Cidade de Mariana, in honour of the then 
reigning Queen of Portugal, the present Prince Regent's grand- 
mother. It is a small, neat, and well-built town, containing from 
six to seven thousand inhabitants. Here is a college for the educa- 
tion of young men destined for the church. The bishop is a prelate 
of exemplary character, and is beloved by all who know him. The 
place has very little trade, and depends chiefly on the mines and 
farms in its vicinity. Many miners reside here whose works are 
several leagues distant, some of them extending to the village of 
Camargo, situated beyond a large plain which stretches westward 
from the confines of the city. 

Having resided in Villa Rica nearly a fortnight, I expressed a 
desire to visit two estates, forty miles distant, known by the names 
of Barro and Castro, both belonging to the Conde de Linhares. 
Between the years 1730 and 1740 these estates produced much gold, 
and were then in the possesion of Senhor Matthias Barbosa, a 
settler of great respectability, who took up these lands and drove 
the Anthropophagi from them. He, becoming very rich, sent his 
only daughter to Portugal to be educated, where she remained, and 
after his death inherited his whole property. She was married in 
Lisbon to a gentleman of the family of Souza, and from them are 



( 182 ) 



descended the two noblemen of that name, who now hold high 
official situations under the Prince Regent. His Excellency the 
Conde's steward furnished me and my worthy friend with mules, 
and Mr. Lucas, the Judge, obligingly ordered every necessary to be 
provided for our journey. We rode through Mariana, and arrived 
at Alto de Chapada, a village, three miles distant from it, situated 
on an elevation in the midst of a fine plain. We soon afterwards 
reached a very high and confined situation, between two perpen- 
dicular mountains, from whence we had a bird's eye view of the 
village of St. Sebastian. From this steep we descended, with great 
difficulty, on foot, to the Rio del Carmen at its base, over which is 
a very high-arched and picturesque bridge. Passing this ravine we 
proceeded a full league by the river side, through a rich country 
abounding in fine sloping hills and fertile plains, watered by nume- 
kous streams w T hich flow into the river in various directions, and all 
of which bear vestiges of having been formerly washed for gold. 
The road side exhibited similar remains, and seemed to have been 
at some period connected with the river, which, in this part, is as 
large as the Thames at Windsor. We passed through San Giatanha, 
a straggling thinly peopled village, and proceeding about three 
miles further, arrived at an indifferent house, called Lavras Velhas, 
where we halted for the night, having performed half our journey. 
The owner of this place found it difficult, with thirty or forty ne- 
groes, to maintain himself decently, though the land was susceptible 
of every species of culture, and needed only the hand of industry 
to render it productive. Every thing about the establishment ex- 
hibited a pitiful spectacle of neglect, indifference, and sloth. It is 
but justice to add that he treated us with the greatest civility, and 
amply supplied our necessities. 

Leaving Lavras Velhas at eight next morning, we passed Moro 
dos Arreas, the country presenting still finer valleys and excellent 
timber, but totally destitute of cattle. Ascending a high hill we 
were immerged for about an hour in a cloud, and exposed to some 



( 183 ) 



small rain, but not sufficient to penetrate our coats; This was the 
only rain we experienced on the road by day. In the night the rain 
sometimes fell plentifully. We observed some exceedingly large 
worms, stretched motionless on the road, which our guide told us 
were sure signs of wet weather. From this height we saw the Rio 
Gualacha, which, with another river, joins the Rio del Carmen about 
ten leagues below, and forms the Rio San Jose. Proceeding in that 
direction through a fine country, we reached Altos de St. Michael, 
where the river last mentioned is of considerable width, but not 
deep. Its waters are extremely turbid, on account of the mud 
brought from the gold-washings along the banks, from its source to 
this place. These heights command a fine view of three windings 
of the river ; at their base there are vestiges of one of the oldest and 
most extensive gold-washings, which yielded much treasure to its 
discoverer and proprietor, Senhor Matthias Barbosa. The country is 
well-wooded, but rather thinly peopled ; I expressed some surprise 
at observing no good dwelling-houses in a district which formerly 
produced so much wealth, and was informed that the first miners, 
eager to take the cream of the gold to as large an extent as they 
could, seldom remained long on the same spot, and contented them* 
selves with building sheds or ranchos to serve for their temporary 
residence. 

Descending this mountain, we entered upon the estate of His Ex- 
cellency, called Fazenda do Barro, and were shewn the house at a 
distance of nearly a league, on a pleasing eminence, near the river* 
side. On arriving, an excellent dinner was provided for us, of which, 
having been eight hours on our mules, we partook very heartily. 

The house, and indeed the whole establishment, were strikingly 
superior, in point of convenience, to the miserable places we had 
lately passed. Having dined, we refreshed ourselves with a walk in 
garden, where the coffee-trees in full blossom shewed, at a distance, 
as if loaded with snow. This spot afforded a view of a most en- 



( 184 ) 



chanting country, diversified with gentle eminences and large valleys 
well clothed with timber. From the farther margin of the river, 
which flows at one hundred yards distance in front of the house, 
rises a fine hill, well calculated for the culture of every species of 
produce, and connected with others of equal fertility. 

On the following day I was chiefly occupied in visiting every part 
of the establishment. The distil-house, sugar-engine, and corn-mill, 
were very much out of repair; the two latter were worked by hori- 
zontal water-wheels of great power. The buildings of the fazenda 
form a square, the southern side being occupied by the house, and 
and the three others consisting of dwellings for the negroes, store- 
houses, carpenters' and blacksmiths' shops, and other offices equally 
useful. 

Having requested to see the cattle, I was shewn seven fine well- 
proportioned cows ; their calves were old, and they being unaccus- 
tomed to be milked regularly, gave very little. I signified to the 
people my wish to instruct them in the management of a dairy 
after the English mode ; and the carpenter hearing my description 
of a churn, readily assured me that he could make one, and set 
about it forthwith in the following manner. He procured a trunk 
of a tree of the length and girth required ; sawed it lengthwise in 
two equal parts, which, (after hollowing them sufficiently, and pre- 
paring a bottom,) he joined with two iron hoops so tightly as to hold 
water. The churn-staff and top were soon finished : but now an un- 
expected difficulty occurred ; here was no place free from dust and 
dirt to serve for a dairy, nor any pan fit to hold the milk. All the 
cooking-pots that could be spared were cleaned for this purpose, but 
they were quite of the wrong make, being wide at the bottom and 
narrow at the brim. They were, however, laid by along with the 
churm to be used the first time the cows were milked. The good 
lady of the house assisted in our preparations, and seemed much in- 
terested in them. 



( 185 ) 



In the afternoon I rode out to see the gold-washings. On the way 
thither I observed a man training a horse, with a cord attached to 
the bridle in one hand, and a whip in the other. Two pieces of 
leather in the form of breechings were sewed to two iron rings ; one 
part was put over the back of the animal, the other part slipped 
down as a breeching ; the part on the back was to prevent its slip- 
ping lower. To these rings were tied cords from the horse's fore- 
feet, capable of being shortened or lengthened at pleasure. The 
horse being put in motion, took very short fore-steps, somewhat like 
those of the chargers in equestrian performances. Horses thus 
trained are here called pacers, and are in great request among per- 
sons of distinction of both sexes, their gait being very easy and 
graceful. 

On arriving at the washings I saw a great extent of ground 
already worked, and immense heaps of quartzose stones. On the 
margin of the river where they were then working, I found them 
cutting away the bank, to the depth of at least ten feet, to get at 
the cascalhao incumbent on the rock. The substance they had to 
cut through was clay, so strong that, though falls of water were let 
upon it, and negroes were constantly working it with hoes of various 
kinds, it was with difficulty to be removed. This was not the only 
impediment, for, by the constant precipitation of mud, the cascal- 
hao was five feet below the bed of the river ; hence, when they had 
sunk their pits, they had to use means for drawing the water from 
them. The hydraulic machines employed for this purpose are con- 
structed as follows : A trough or spout, made of four stout planks, 
forming a cavity, say six inches square, is placed in an inclined po- 
sition, with its lower end in the pit, where a roller is properly secured 
to a pile driven into the ground : an iron chain, with peculiar links, 
on every one of which is fixed a piece of wood, nearly answering the 
interior dimensions of the spout, is passed through it, then under the 
roller, and over the outside, up to the axis of a water-wheel, which 
being put in motion, causes the discharge of a column of water equal 

b b 



( 186 ) 

to the cavity. These machines are calculated to raise a great deal 
of water, but they are liable to be thrown out of repair. In many 
cases hand-pumps would serve the purpose better, being made at 
little trouble or expense, easily repaired, and always ready at an 
hour s notice. They are here utterly unknown. 

In the operation of getting gold, the heavy work is assigned to the 
male negroes, and the lighter labour to the females. The cascalhao, 
dug from these pits by the former, is carried away by the latter in 
gamellas, or bowls, to be washed. When a sufficient quantity has 
been procured, the men proceed to that process, which they per- 
form much in the way already described in treating of St. Paul's* 
I perceived, however, that here they did not, in the first instance, 
attempt to separate the gold from the black oxide of iron, but emp-* 
tied their gamellas into a larger vessel, by rinsing them in the water 
which it contained. The substance deposited in this vessel was de- 
livered out, in small portions of about a pound each, to the most 
skilful washers, as the operation of washing, or, as it was termed, 
purifying it, required great niceness and dexterity. Some of the 
grains of gold were so fine as to float on the surface, and of course 
were liable to be washed away in these repeated changes of water ; 
to prevent which the negroes bruised a few handfuls of herbs on a 
stone, and mixed the juice in small proportions with the water in 
their gamellas. Whether this liquid did in reality tend to precipi- 
tate the gold, I could not positively ascertain, but the negroes cer- 
tainly used it with the greatest confidence. 

There is another mode of separating the gold from the cascalhao, 
called canoe-washing, which is extremely interesting. The canoes 
are made in the following manner : Two ten or twelve inch planks, 
about twelve or fifteen feet in length, are laid on the ground, form- 
ing an inclined plane, sloping about one inch in twelve : two other 
planks of similar dimensions are fixed in the same direction at the 
lower end, forming a second inclined plane, with a fall of six inches 
from the former. On their sides are boards placed edge-wise, and 



( 187 ) 



staked down to the ground so as to form long shallow troughs, the 
bottoms of which are covered with hides tanned with the hair on, 
having the hairy side outwards, or, in defect of these, with rough 
baize. Down these troughs is conveyed the water containing the 
oxide of iron and the lighter particles of gold ; the latter substance 
precipitating in its course is entangled by the hair. Every half-hour 
the hides are taken up, and carried to a tank near at hand, formed 
of four walls, say five feet long, four broad, and four deep, and con- 
taining about two feet depth of water. The hides are stretched over 
this tank and well beaten, then dipped and beaten repeatedly, until 
all the gold is disentangled, after which they are carried back and 
replaced in the troughs. The tanks are locked up at nights, and 
well secured. The sediment taken from them being light is easily 
washed away by the hand in the manner before described, leaving 
only the black oxide of iron, called esmeril, and the gold, which is 
so fine that mercury is used to separate it. The process, as I saw it 
performed, was as follows : About two pounds weight of oxide of 
iron, very rich in fine grains of gold, was put in a clean bowl ; a 
quantity of mercury, about two ounces, was added to it ; the mass 
of oxide, which was very damp, was worked by the hand for about 
twenty minutes, when the mercury appeared to have separated the 
esmeril, and to have taken up all the gold, assuming a soft doughy 
mass, that retained any form into which it was squeezed. The grains 
of gold, however, remained not amalgamated with, but merely enve- 
loped in, the mercury. The mass was put into a folded handker- 
chief, and an ounce or more of mercury was wrung or squeezed from 
it. The rest was put into a small brass dish, covered with a few 
green leaves, and then placed over a charcoal fire, where it was 
stirred with an iron rod to prevent the gold from adhering to the sides 
of the dish. The leaves were occasionally changed as they became 
parched by the heat. When taken off, they exhibited in some parts 
small globules of mercury, and in others white oxide ; on washing 
them with water, nearly half an ounce of the former substance was 

b b 2 



( IBS ) 



obtained from them*. I ever observed that the gold after this ope- 
ration was changed in colour from an agreeable soft yellow to a dirty 
brown, and presented a very different appearance from that which 
was not subjected to mercury. 

By way of suggesting an improvement, I made some drawings and 
models of earthen vessels for evaporating, and afterwards condensing 
the mercury ; but the quantity of gold requiring this mode of sepa- 
ration is so inconsiderable, that it would scarcely be worth their 
while to alter the process now practised. 

I rode over various parts of the estate, and more particularly along 
both banks of the river, which, as well as the bed, appeared to have 
been much washed. The bends, or parts where eddies were formed, 
were the places noted as being rich in gold. Wherever the margin 
formed a flat, or level, the cascalhao continued under the surface to 
some distance, appearing like a continuation of the bed of the river, 
which in all probability it was, as the river is known to have been 
much wider formerly. The parts that were then working, and 
others that had yet to be worked, bore a very unpromising appear- 
ance. 

An opportunity was soon afforded me of carrying into execution 
the proposed dairy experiment. Having obtained about six quarts 
of milk, (which, on account of the scarcity of grass, was very poor,) 
I put it into the culinary vessels that had been set apart for it; but 
such was the state of the place in which they were deposited, that 
though I placed banana leaves over them, the surface next morning 
was covered with dust. I took off the cream in the best manner I 
could, but not being able to find a cellar or cold place for it to stand 
in, I was obliged to leave it in the same room with the milk, where it 
was hardly secure against the pigs. On each of the two following 



* This species of sublimation on a small scale interested me greatly. Could it proceed 
from any glimmering of science in the minds of the negroes, or was it merely an accidental 
discovery ? 



( 189 ) 



mornings I obtained about two gallons of milk, which being added 
to the other, was in due time churned ; and, notwithstanding the 
disadvantages of poor milk, improper utensils, and bad keeping, a 
tolerably fair proportion of good butter was obtained. The people 
seemed highly satisfied with the success of the process; but I had strong 
doubts that they would not pursue it after my departure, as they 
must naturally dislike the trouble and care which it required. Such 
was the force of their habitual and long-cherished prejudices, thai I 
have no hesitation in saying they would take ten times more pains to 
procure forty-shillings-worth of gold at an expence of thirty shillings, 
than they would to obtain forty-shillings-worth of butter, though it 
were only to cost them five. 

It may be expected that I should assign some reasons for entering 
so frequently into detail upon one of the simplest branches of rural 
economy. I have to observe, then, that ere I left Rio de Janeiro to 
undertake this journey, I was informed that the cheese generally 
consumed in that capital, and regarded there as a luxury, was the 
produce of the district to which I was going. Its taste was some- 
times so extremely rancid and disagreeable, as to be utterly un- 
wholesome, and from this circumstance I judged that there must be 
great mismanagement in the preparation of it. All the farms which 
I had occasion to visit on my journey to Villa Rica, and from thence 
to this place, fully confirmed my opinion ; for, miserable as was the 
condition of every department belonging to them, that of the dairy 
was still worse. In the few places where they pretended to prepare 
milk for cheese, not only were the various utensils in an extremely 
filthy condition, but the rennet was so putrid as to be in the last 
degree sickening. I endeavoured to make the people sensible of 
the advantages of an improved mode of management, and wherever 
I had an opportunity, gave them information how to proceed ; but 
as oral or written instructions were little calculated to make a durable 
impression, I determined, when leisure and convenience should 
concur, to enforce them by example. The first and only opportu- 



( 190 ) 



nity of this kind presented itself at the Fazenda do Barro; and I 
was the more induced to avail myself of it, from considering that the 
precedent which I wished to give to the farmers of the district would have 
greater influence by being sanctioned by the approval of His Excel- 
lency the Conde de Linhares. The result, as I have just observed, was 
not very flattering to my hopes ; a solitary experiment can do little 
towards reforming a general evil of long continuance ; and there is 
no probability that this or any other branch of the farming system of 
the country will be improved, until the great and the opulent zeal- 
ously unite for the accomplishment of an object so highly important. 

In our excursions through various parts of the estate, we observed 
on the exterior of many of the trees a great variety of crimson lichens, 
which, on being steeped in water, imparted a very strong tinge of 
that colour. Here were excellent barks for tanning, particularly 
that of a tree called Canifistula, which does not redden or colour the 
hide. We found many beautiful varieties of the jacaranda, or rose- 
wood. 

Having resided at Barro some days, we set out for the Fazenda 
de Castro, distant about seven miles, where we arrived, after a plea- 
sant ride over a mountainous and finely-wooded district, containing 
large tracts of rich virgin land, watered by many excellent streams. 
This noble mansion was erected by the first possessor of the district, 
Senhor Matthias Barbosa. It is very spacious and airy, having a gal- 
lery in front forty-eight yards long, to which open fourteen folding- 
doors, or windows, extending nearly from the top to the bottom of 
the rooms. It is situated near the confluence of the Riberon del 
Carmen and the Rio Gualacha, which form the San Jose, a river as 
large as the Thames at Battersea. 

We did not rest above an hour at this fazenda, it being our inten- 
tion to visit the aldea or village of San Jose de Barra Longa, situated 
on the confines of the territory inhabited by the Bootocoody Indians. 
Crossing the river by a fine wooden bridge, built about fifty years 
ago, but still in tolerable repair, we proceeded along the bank, which 



( 191 ) 

was embellished with several gardens, and presented more frequent 
appearances of cultivation than we had of late been accustomed to 
view. The climate is much hotter than at Villa Rica, on account of 
the lowness of the situation ; and we were informed that fruits of 
every kind, particularly the pine, grew in this soil to great perfection 
in size and fineness of flavour. The truth of these accounts we could 
not ascertain, as this was not the fruit-season. 

After travelling about four miles we arrived at the village. It 
being Sunday, numbers of people had come from various parts in 
the neighbourhood to attend divine service, and, after it was over, 
flocked in crowds to the place where we alighted. It appeared as if 
the whole population of the village, men, women, and children, were 
possessed with the same spirit of curiosity, so great was their 
eagerness to get a sight of us. We dined in a mixed company of 
ladies and gentlemen, at the house of the worthy vicar, who kept 
a very hospitable table, and paid us the most flattering attention. 
A military officer and a judge, who were of the party, entered into 
conversation with us; and it was difficult to decide who were the 
most inquisitive, they, respecting the motives and objects of ourr 
journey, or we, respecting the state of the country, the Anthropo- 
phagi, &c. 

We learnt that the village was founded about twenty-three years,- 
ago by a number of Portugueze, who were tempted to settle, in a 
spot so exposed to the depredations of the Bootocoodies, by the 
gold with which it abounded. At the present day, I was informed 
that it contains about four hundred inhabitants, and that the 
vicinity is well peopled, so that a sufficient force is always at hand 
to repel the savages ; who, no longer daring to attack openly, 
now have often recourse to stratagem. When they have marked 
out a house, and ascertained its strength, they set fire to it by shoot- 
ing arrows with fire-brands into the roof, and fall on the unfortunate 
inhabitants as they are attempting to escape. These savages, accus- 
tomed to live in the woods, and well practised in all the arts requi- 



( 192 ) 



site for catching the wild animals on which they subsist, have a 
thousand stratagems for way-laying the settlers. Sometimes they 
render themselves invisible by tying branches and young trees about 
them, and fix their bows imperceptibly, so that, when a poor negro 
or white happens to pass near them, they seldom miss their aim. 
At other times they rub themselves with ashes and lie on the ground, 
or make pit-falls, in which they place pointed stakes, and cover them 
with twigs and leaves. They have a great dread of fire-arms, and 
betake themselves to flight whenever they hear them : but these 
weapons are by no means so general among the settlers as they 
ought to be, and the few they have are of very indifferent make, 
and frequently altogether useless. It sometimes, though rarely, hap- 
pens, that the soldiers surprise the aborigines, in which case no com- 
bat takes place ; the latter run away as speedily as possible ; and 
their pursuers, taking vengeance for injuries sustained, seldom give 
quarter. Those whom they make prisoners they are obliged to tie 
hand and foot, and carry on a pole to a place of security : if any 
one of them be loosed but for a moment, he bursts away, and flees 
into the woods like a tiger, leaving his pursuers behind. They are 
untameable, either by stripes or kindness ; and, if they find no means 
of escaping from confinement, they commonly refuse sustenance, and 
die of hunger. 

The injuries occasionally done to the settlers by these savages have 
excited the attention of Government, who have passed a decisive 
law against them, A proclamation has been issued by the Prince 
Regent, in which they are invited to live in villages, and become 
Christians, under a promise that, if they come to terms of peace and 
amity with the Portugueze, their rights shall be acknowledged, and 
they shall enjoy, in common with other subjects, the protection of 
the state ; but, if they persist in their barbarous and inhuman prac- 
tices, the soldiers of His Royal Highness are ordered to carry on a 
war of extermination against them. Those who are taken prisoners 
are at the disposal of their captors, as slaves, for the space of ten 

9 



( 193 ) 



years. It is doubtful whether the offers of conciliation contained in 
this proclamation will produce in any degree the desired effect; 
for the Bootocoodies have an unconquerable aversion to a settled 
way of life, and a rooted antipathy to every other nation ; nor have 
they intelligence enough to appreciate the benefits of civilized so- 
ciety ; so that there appears no hope of reducing them but by the 
dreadful alternative proposed in the latter part of the decree. One 
reason for having recourse to this summary mode of dealing with 
them, which will probably outweigh any arguments in favour of 
gentler proceedings, is, that the country they inhabit contains gold, 
and the settlers and adventurers are desirous to obtain speedy pos- 
session of it. Some officers, well acquainted with the locality of 
the territory, and skilled in the art of conducting an Indian war, 
are already employed in this difficult enterprize. About two leagues 
from this village is another called Piranga, situated near the margin 
of a river of that name, which at a distance of four leagues joins the 
San Jose, and with it forms the Rio Doce. This river runs through 
a fine country, in a northerly and afterwards an easterly direction, 
discharging itself into the sea in lat. 19° 30' south. There are three 
islands at its mouth, called Os Tres Irmanos, (the Three Brothers). 

"Were this river rendered navigable, what benefits might accrue to 
the fine country through which it flows ! Large quantities of sugar, 
cotton, and other produce, which the soil is capable of growing, be- 
sides excellent timber for exportation, would then form the basis of 
an extensive commerce, by stimulating the industry of the planters, 
who are at present averse from cultivating beyond the extent of their 
own consumption, on account of the heavy expence attendant on a 
land-carriage of above five hundred miles to the nearest sea-port. 

Piranga is perhaps more exposed to the attacks of the Indians 
than the village of San Jose, but there are some gold-washings in its 
neighbourhood which tempt the inhabitants to brave that danger. 
A small band of horse-soldiers is stationed here to parade the con- 
fines, enter the woods, and go in quest of the savages whenever in- 

c c 



( 194 j 



formation is given. Yet, notwithstanding these precautions, the 
village is never in perfect security ; a house in its immediate vicinity 
was surprised a few months previous to our visit to this district. 

We now took leave of the vicar and his guests, and, I may add, of 
all the villagers, who came out to salute us as we passed. Returning 
to Castro, I remained the whole of the next day to examine the 
establishment. It is built, like that at Barro, in the form of a square, 
the dwellings of the negroes forming three sides, and the mansion the 
fourth, the entrance being in front through a pair of gates which, 
when shut, secure the whole. The rooms in the mansion were like 
ancient halls, adorned with carvings, and fitted up and furnished after 
the old fashion. Here were blunderbusses, swords, and other wea- 
pons for defence, used in former days, when the house was liable to 
the continual attacks of the Bootocoodies. The stairs, gallery, and 
floors were of fine wood, *of a quality which time had not in any 
degree perceptibly injured. Attached to the house were the remains 
of a sugar-mill, distil-house, corn-mill, and a machine, worked by a 
strap and spindles, for spinning cotton, all in a state of neglect. The 
whole establishment bore marks of former opulence and grandeur, 
from which it appeared to have gradually declined as the gold-wash- 
ings at the confluence of the rivers and in other parts had become 
exhausted. The negroes were now all removed to Barro, except a 
few infirm and sick, who were stationed here to keep the mansion in 
order, (this being considered as a light employment for them,) until 
such time as their convalescence should fit them for resuming 
their labours along with their brethren at the other estate. 

Having made a sketch of the house, and visited every part which 
interested me, I returned by the same road to Barro, where I em- 
ployed myself in making a topographical map of the river, distin- 
guishing by different colours the places already washed for gold, those 
which were then washing, and the yet un worked grounds. This sort 
of map might be made on a large scale, so as to include a whole 



( 195 ) 



district or parish, where the several mines, or gold-beds, in their 
different stages, might be exhibited at one view. 

On this estate are employed one hundred and fifty-six negroes, of 
all descriptions, who, on such excellent land, producing every neces- 
sary for food and clothing, might be expected to earn considerably 
more than their own maintenance ; yet a former steward managed so 
ill for twenty successive years, that, although he had nothing to pur- 
chase but a little iron, and though the gold-mines were then more pro- 
ductive than at present, he ran the establishment annually into debt 
to the shopkeepers of Villa Rica. A single circumstance may account 
for this mismanagement; — the noble proprietor resided in Portugal. 
At present the estate is in a much more prosperous way, being en- 
trusted to the care of another steward, and three overseers, all Cre- 
olians. The latter receive a salary of thirty milrees (about nine 
pounds sterling) per annum, besides their maintenance ; their busi- 
ness is to execute the orders of the steward, and to superintend the 
labour of the negroes committed to their charge. They lead a life 
of extreme indolence, never putting their hands to any species of 
work. 

The general diet of the country-people in this land of Canaan is 
somewhat similar to that of the miners in the vicinity of St. Pauls, 
already described. The master, his steward, and the overseers, sit 
down to a breakfast of kidney-beans of a black colour, boiled, which 
they mix with the flour of Indian corn, and eat with a little dry pork 
fried or boiled. The dinner generally consists, also, of a bit of pork 
or bacon boiled, the water from which is poured upon a dish of the 
flour above-mentioned, thus forming a stiff pudding. A large quan- 
tity (about half a peck) of this food is poured in a heap on the table, 
and a great dish of boiled beans is set upon it: each person helps him- 
self in the readiest way, there being only one knife, which is very often 
dispensed with. Aplate or two of colewort or cabbage-leaves complete 
the repast. The food is commonly served up in the earthen vessels 
used for cooking it ; sometimes on pewter dishes. The general 

c c 2 



( 196 J 



beverage is water. At supper nothing is seen but large quantities 
of boiled greens, with a little bit of poor bacon to flavour them. On 
any festive occasion, or when strangers appear, the dinner or supper 
is improved by the addition of a stewed fowl. ' 

The food prepared for the negroes is Indian corn-flour, mixed with 
hot water, in which a bit of pork has been boiled. This dish serves 
both for breakfast and supper. Their dinner consists of beans boiled 
in the same way. This unfortunate race of men are here treated 
with great kindness and humanity, which, indeed, their good beha- 
viour seems to deserve. They are allowed as much land as they can, 
at their leisure, cultivate, (Sundays and holidays being by law al- 
lotted to them for that purpose,) and are permitted to sell or dispose 
of their produce as they please. Their owners clothe them with 
shirts and trowsers made of coarse cotton, which is grown and woven 
on the estate. Their days of labour are rather long : before sun-rise 
a bell rings to summon them to prayers, which are recited by one of 
the overseers, and repeated by the congregation ; after worship is 
over they proceed to work, at which they continue till after sun-set, 
when prayers are said as in the morning. An hour after supper they 
are employed in preparing wood to burn, taking Indian corn from 
the husk, and in other in-door operations. Swelled necks are not 
uncommon among the men-negroes, but in other respects they ap- 
pear healthy : I saw few or none afflicted with elephantiasis, or with 
any cutaneous disease. There were many very aged of both sexes; 
a few could even remember their old master, the first possessor, 
though he has been dead upwards of sixty years. 

Their principal article of diet, the farinha de mielho, or flour of 
Indian corn, appeared so palatable and nutritive, that, after living 
upon it for some time, I had the curiosity to inquire into the mode 
of preparing it from the grain. It is first soaked in water, and after- 
wards pounded in its swelled and moist state, to separate the outer 
husk. It then appears almost granulated, and is put upon copper 
pans, which have a fire underneath, and in these it is kept constantly 

9 



I 197 ) 



stirred until it is dry and fit for eating. This substitute for bread is 
as common among the inhabitants here as is the farinha de Pao or 
mandioca among the people of Rio de Janeiro, St. Paul's, and other 
districts. 

The grain is grown always on virgin lands, cleared by burning, 
after the manner already described. In good seasons, or, in other 
words, when the dry weather allows the felled wood to be completely 
reduced to ashes, the return is from one hundred and fifty to two 
hundred bushels for one. Weeding is only performed after the seed 
has been a short time in the ground ; indeed, the growing crops suf- 
fer less from the neglect of that operation than from the depreda- 
tions of rats, which are frequently very considerable. 

On the state of society here I had little leisure to make observ- 
ations. A general debility seemed to prevail among the females, 
which I imputed to the want of better food and more exercise : they 
confine themselves principally to the sedentary employments of 
sewing, or making lace. While at St. Jose I saw many females from 
the country, dressed in gowns made of English prints ; some of them 
had woollen mantles, edged with gold lace or Manchester velvet, 
thrown loosely over their shoulders. Their hair was invariably fas- 
tened with combs, and they in general wore men's hats. The men, 
most of whom belonged to the militia, appeared in uniforms. No 
two things can be more different than the deshabille and full-dress of 
a nominal militia officer. When at home he seldom puts on more 
than half his clothes, over which he throws an old great coat ; and 
saunters about the house in this attire from morning till night, a true 
picture of idleness. On Sundays, or on gala-days, after some hours 
spent in decorating his person, he sallies forth, completely metamor- 
phosed from a slip-shod sloven into a spruce officer, glittering in a 
weight of gold lace, on a horse caparisoned with equal splendor, form- 
ing as fine a sight for the gazing multitude as a general at a review. 
He observes no medium between these extremes, being always 
very shabby or very fine. 



( 198 ) 



During my stay at Barro I was presented with some singularly 
fine fruit, equal in flavour to fresh almonds, and capable of being 
preserved by drying only, so as to become a valuable article of com- 
merce. Having never before heard of this fruit, I am induced to 
give a brief account of it. The exterior substance is about the size 
of a full-grown cocoa-nut with the rind on, say nine or ten inches 
long and five or six in the thickest part. It grows suspended from 
the branch by a very slender but strong stem. This shell is full of 
kernels, to the number of from thirty to fifty, of the shape of al- 
monds, but twice or thrice the size, disposed in ranges or layers and 
separated from each other by a white pithy substance. As these 
kernels ripen, the top of the shell, which appears like a lid, is gra- 
dually forced open, and when they are at full maturity, the larger 
part, which contains them, separates and falls to the ground. The 
trees, at the season of shedding their fruits, are frequented by 
wild hogs, herds of monkies, flocks of parrots, and other birds, 
which never quit them while any of these delicious nuts remain. I 
was credibly informed that some trees have been known to produce 
above a ton weight in a season. One of the nuts I preserved and 
brought with me, which I sent to that enlightened philosopher and 
eminent naturalist Sir Joseph Banks. 

We now took leave of the good people at the fazenda, and re- 
turned to Villa Rica by the way we came. I had, with great diffi- 
culty, procured a quantity of butter, made after the new process, as 
a present for Mr. Lucas, the Judge, which arrived perfectly fresh 
and sweet. On passing Lavras Velhas, as we returned, we were 
shewn some excellent cinchona, very like that of Peru, and said to 
possess similar properties in a high degree. From the specimen we 
saw, there was every reason to believe, that, if fairly introduced into 
practice, it might be administered in many cases with as much 
success as Peruvian bark ; and, as great quantities of it might be 
procured here, the experiment is certainly worth attending to by 



( 199 ) 



medical men. I sent a parcel of it home, but by some accident or 
other it was lost in the Custom-house. 

In many parts of our route we might have collected insects, but 
they require so much attention and care in preserving them for con- 
veyance so great a distance, that I gave up the pursuit. It ap- 
peared to me extraordinary, that I had not, since my arrival in 
Brazil, seen (except in the cabinets of the curious) more than one 
diamond-beetle, though I had frequently searched for them in almost 
every variety of plantation. 

During my absence from Villa Rica one of my soldiers had pro- 
cured me a full pound of native bismuth in lumps, none of which 
exceeded an ounce in weight. It is frequently found in this state 
covered with a yellow oxide, which proves that it is out of its place, 
as it originally occurs in veins. Many pieces of pyrites, and various 
iron ores, were also brought me. 

I had commissioned some persons to collect land shells for me 
during my absence, and was now to my great gratification pre- 
sented with six, of a fine chesnut brown colour, with beauti- 
ful pink mouths, belonging to a new variety of the helix. Having 
kept them a few days, without taking out the animals, I was sur- 
prised to find that one of the latter had laid two eggs. I had not 
before imagined that they were oviparous. I took one of the shells 
in my hand, while the animal was crawling, when it immediately 
folded itself, and entered very quickly, in which exertion another 
egg was deposited in the mouth of the shell. All the eggs were 
about the size of a sparrow's. These were the only land shells I had 
seen on this journey. 

On resuming my visit to the mint I took an early opportunity of 
stating to the acting governors my ideas respecting a new regulation 
for supplying mercury to the miners. One great impediment to the 
use of that metal, so essential in certain branches of the process, 
was the exorbitant price at which it was exclusively sold by the apo- 
thecaries, generally upwards of two shillings the ounce. I suggested 



( 200 ) 



that the mint should be the general depository for it, and that it should 
be issued from thence to the gold-washers without profit. By this 
regulation the article would be brought into general use, much to 
the benefit of the state as well as of private individuals. I also 
gave them models of earthen vessels, which might be made at small 
expence, for evaporating and condensing the mercury, which, if 
universally adopted, would effect a great saving in the consump- 
tion of that article. 

The remainder of my stay, previous to my journey to Tejuco, 
passed very agreeably. In the evening parties to which I was in- 
vited, and which generally consisted of ladies and gentlemen, I ob- 
served that the English style of dress prevailed, particularly among 
the former. The houses of the higher classes in Villa Rica are much 
more convenient and better furnished than any I saw in Rio 
de Janeiro and St. Paul's, and are for the most part kept in the 
exactest order. Their beds seemed to me so elegant as to deserve 
a particular description. The posts were of fine wood, fluted or 
carved in various ways ; the sides plain, the bottoms of boards or 
leather. The bed itself was of cotton, the sheets of fine linen edged 
with lace of home manufacture, full nine inches broad. The bolster 
was covered with fine muslin, the ends of which were edged also 
with lace. The pillows were made round at the ends and covered 
with pink sarsnet, over which was another cover of fine muslin, 
terminated with broad lace, which being starched and delicately 
managed had a very rich appearance. The coverlet was yellow 
satin of a Damask pattern, edged like the sheets and pillows with 
broad lace. The hangings were of the same materials, in the form of 
a canopy, without curtains. Not excepting the refinements of 
recent date in this article of furniture, I never saw beds so magni- 
ficent as those of the opulent in this captaincy. 

Every thing being now in readiness for my departure, I waited 
upon the several inhabitants to whom I had been introduced to ex- 
press my thanks for the polite attentions they had shewn me, and 



( 201 ) 



received from them the most obliging assurances of friendship and 
the kindest wishes for my welfare. I also, much to my regret, took 
leave of my valued friend and fellow-traveller Mr. Goodall, whose 
affairs required him to go to St. Joao del Rey, and thence return to 
Rio de Janeiro. Never was a traveller more fortunate in a companion ; 
always cheerful and in spirits, he had the happy faculty of re- 
garding every thing on its bright side, and in all the various incon- 
veniences of bad roads, wretched inns, miserable fare, and worse 
accommodations, he exemplified the truth of the adage that " a 
merry heart hath a continual feast." Being perfectly master of the 
language, and well acquainted with the character and manners of 
the people, he made himself at home every where, and generally- 
contrived to draw from the conversation of those around him some 
topic either for lively remark or instructive comment. These amia- 
ble qualities, the offspring of a cultivated understanding and an 
excellent heart, gave him a double claim to that respect and con- 
fidence which we ever entertain for those whom we distinguish by 
the name of friend. 



D D 



( 202 ) 



CHAP. XII. 

Journey from Villa Rica to Tejuco, the Capital of the Diamond 

District. 

T TAVING previously sent letters to His Excellency the Conde 
A A de Linhares, giving him an account of my proceedings, I set 
out from Villa Rica, attended by the two soldiers and my negro 
servant. I passed through the city of Mariana, and entered upon 
the plain in its vicinity already mentioned, which in the rainy season 
is often entirely overflowed. To the left I observed a beautiful and 
romantic mountain called Moro de Santa Ana, on which stood many 
small neat houses, surrounded by coffee-plantations and orangeries ; 
its base was watered by a corvinha or rivulet, the banks of which 
contain much gold, and are worked by the inhabitants of the mount. 
Passing onward, the road became very confined; and the land, though 
now covered with wood, appeared to have been formerly under cul- 
tivation. We here met a number of mules laden with sugar, 
destined for Villa Rica, or if not sold there, for Rio de Janeiro. 

We arrived and refreshed at a little village called Camargo, and 
passed an excellent house, situated near a rivulet of that name, 
where there is a gold- washing which employs about two hundred 
negroes, and is said to be very productive. About a league farther 
we passed a poor little place called Bento Rodrigo, and about six in 
the evening arrived at a very considerable village called Infectionado, 
which contains full fifteen hundred inhabitants. It had been more 
populous, but its mines having decreased it was then on the de- 
cline. Finding no inn that offered any thing tolerable, I alighted 
at the house of a shopkeeper, who very civilly provided me an 
apartment to sleep in, and introduced me at supper to his wife and 



( 203 ) 



three other ladies, whose society was very pleasant and cheerful. 
On the next day, after some trouble, my soldiers at a late hour pro- 
cured mules, when I set out about ten o'clock upon a bad road, and 
after travelling half a league arrived at the Corgo de Infectionado, 
a fine rivulet flowing through a country rich in gold, particularly 
near the village of Santa Barbara, where washings appear in all 
directions. From hence to the village of Catos Altos, two leagues 
distant, is a tract of the finest open country I ever travelled in Brazil; 
it has many features resembling that between Matlock and Derby, 
and its mountains bear a strong similarity to those of Westmoreland. 
There are slips in some of them in which topazes are found, but 
rarely any of good quality. This district appeared equally suited 
for mining and agriculture, the ground being rich above as well as 
below. The village of Catos Altos, through which we rode, con- 
tains at least two thousand inhabitants, and is situated in a popu- 
lous neighbourhood. The public buildings are well constructed, 
and the private houses in general appear very respectable, but bear 
evident marks of decay. We crossed the river, which is broad but 
shallow, and has works on its banks of greater extent and under 
better management than any I had hitherto seen. The whole vi- 
cinity is irrigated by numerous rivulets, many of which are di- 
verted from their courses to a great distance for the purpose of gold- 
washing. In all parts, even on the tops and sides of the hills, we 
observed operations of this kind going on ; in the valleys there were 
many spots still rich in gold, which had not yet been washed. 

Continuing about six miles over this naked country, we entered 
on a more confined road, and passing a village called Cocaes, pro- 
ceeded half a league further in the dark, to the mansion of Senhor 
Felicia, the Captain Mor of the district, where we alighted, having 
travelled this day above thirty miles. On being announced I was 
immediately shewn up stairs into a suite of handsome apartments, 
furnished with great magnificence, where I was introduced by the 
Captain to his amiable lady and daughter. We were joined by 

d d 2 



( 204 ) 



Dr. Gomedez, a man of talents and science, with whom I entered 
into conversation, and who afterwards shewed me a fine collection 
of gold in various forms, some like duck-shot, others laminated with 
micaceous iron, others arborescent. He had also some specimens of 
stalactitic matter, on which nitre was forming, others of specular 
iron ore, and three or four fine pieces of chrome, which I at first 
took for realgar. From this gentleman I received considerable in- 
formation respecting the mineralogy of the country, which is so dif- 
ficult to be obtained accurate, that I found reason to reject all which 
did not correspond with what I saw. In the course of the evening 
the party was joined by the Count de Engenhausen, who commands 
a corps of cavalry in the district. He made many enquiries of me 
respecting England, that being the country in which he had received 
his education, and to which he seemed as much attached as to his 
native soil. 

This large establishment, though still rich in gold, is worked by- 
only two hundred negroes. One part of the estate is an auriferous 
mountain of schistus, containing beds of micaceous iron ore ; the 
latter substance forms a thin stratum, which contains gold in grains 
laminated with it. It is singular to remark, that the cascalhao, 
which generally, nay almost invariably, occurs in ravines and low 
situations is here found at a very small depth below the summit. 

The discovery of the original gold-mine in this rich sesmaria is said 
to have been owing to the following accident. Some negroes em- 
ployed in clearing the land, broke up an ant-hill of considerable 
size, when on laying it open to the air, for the purpose of destroy- 
ing or dispersing the insects, large grains of gold were found. It is, 
however, highly probable that the general characteristics of the 
soil had led to the discovery long before this period, and that the 
accident here related served only to indicate the presence of gold in 
a part which had not been supposed to contain any. The estate is 
situated almost in the centre of the mining country, and is reputed 
one of the richest portions of it. The owner and his brother, who 



( 205 ) 



are partners, have conducted their concerns in a liberal way, and are 
said to be very wealthy. It was my wish to have staid a day or two 
for the purpose of inspecting the extensive works which they have 
opened ; but I forbore to make any request of this nature, as I per- 
ceived, or supposed, some little jealousy or suspicion respecting my 
views. It seemed to be the opinion here, as well as in other places, 
that I had a mission from Government, authorizing me to enquire 
into the state of the mines, and give a report concerning them. 

In riding past the works, after having taken leave of the captain, 
I did not perceive any machinery used for facilitating manual 
labour. The tedious process of washing by hand was most generally 
practised ; in some instances inclined canoes were used, which, if 
carried to the degree of improvement of which they are susceptible, 
might much more effectually answer the purpose. 

Between the mountain on Captain Felicia's estate and the village 
of Sahara is a rich mining district, which extends also to Bromare, 
over a continuation of hilly country. It is occupied by several opu- 
lent miners, who possess many fine grounds still unworked. A tract 
of land a few miles in extent is appropriated to agricultural purposes, 
being reputed to be destitute of gold. 

I proceeded four leagues, over a well-watered and finely-wooded 
country, to a hamlet called Vas, a name which had become familiar 
to my ear through the frequent mention which my soldiers made of 

the good old man of Vas." This person, whose reception of me 
fully justified the appellation with which he had been distinguished, 
was a farmer from Oporto, who had been resident here about forty 
years. He bought the estate with twenty negroes upon it, and paid 
for it by yearly instalments in twenty years afterwards. This mode 
of disposing of estates is much practised, being at once easy to the 
purchaser, and advantageous to the seller, as it ensures to the latter 
a better price than he could obtain on the condition of immediate 
payment. The house, which is well-built and convenient, has a 
sugar-mill and distillery attached to it. The sugar is generally sent 



( 206 ) 



to Rio, under an agreement with the carrier, giving him half or 
sometimes two-thirds of the proceeds, with a promise of back-car- 
riage of salt, iron, and other commodities. 

Owing to the kind assiduities of my worthy host, the evening 
passed very agreeably. Many of the neighbours came to see and 
converse with me, as I was the first Englishman, or perhaps foreigner, 
who had ever travelled so far into the interior. Their curiosity led 
them to examine almost every implement I carried with me ; my 
saddle, bridle, and stirrups were viewed with great attention; nor 
could they imagine how it was possible to sit in the former with any 
degree of safety. There was no convincing them that it was much 
preferable to the Portugueze saddle, which has a ridge about eight 
inches high, both before and behind, so that the rider is, as it were, 
in the stocks, and, though not so liable to be thrown out, has a most 
galling and uncomfortable seat. 

The next morning I visited the negroes' houses, and was much 
pleased to find one set apart for the reception of poor and distressed 
travelling negroes, who here find a fatherly protection, and are allowed 
to stay as long a time as may suit their necessities. On taking leave 
of the good old gentleman, I could not prevail on him to accept any 
remuneration for his kindness, and he replied to my thanks with the 
warmest assurances of welcome. I crossed a fine stream, and rode 
through several plantations of sugar-cane, which were at this season 
nearly ready for cutting. The country, as we proceeded, gradually 
became more mountainous, and abounded with argillaceous schistus 
very full of quartz. After riding about sixteen miles, we saw a very 
singular mountain, or bare rock of granite, called Itambe, forming 
part of a high ridge which lay on our left. About four o'clock we 
arrived at a poor village, also called Itambe, situated near a fine 
river of the same name. This place was formerly of some conse- 
quence, but as the gold in its vicinity failed, it sunk into poverty and 
wretchedness. It contains about a thousand inhabitants, who, de- 
graded to the lowest stage of inactive apathy, looked as if they were 

9 



( 207 ) 



the ghosts of their progenitors haunting the ruins of their departed 
wealth. 

Every thing about them bore a cheerless aspect ; the houses were 
ready to fall lo the ground through want of repair ; the door-places 
were overgrown with grass, and the patches of garden-ground that 
here and there appeared were covered with weeds. The face of the 
country, too, was entirely different from that which I had passed on 
my way hither, being universally sterile, dry, and stony. It may 
well be supposed, from this description, that our accommodations 
here were of the worst kind : we halted at a miserable abode, where 
they offered us some mouldy Indian corn and feijones, and, after a 
great deal of difficulty, procured us a fowl. My servant was obliged 
to clean all the utensils before they could be used ; and the soldiers, 
while cooking, were obliged to guard the pot lest some half-famished 
prowler should steal it. The commandant of the place, with whom 
we had afterwards some conversation, answered our remarks on the 
visible signs of starvation in the looks of the villagers, by coolly say- 
ing, " While they get Indian corn to eat, and water to drink, they 
will not die of hunger." I was glad to depart from this home of 
famine as fast as possible, heartily joining in the exclamation which 
the Portugueze have bestowed upon it : " De las miserias de Itambe 
Senhor nos libre," — (From the miseries of Itambe the Lord deliver 
us!) 

After riding about five miles, we came to the River of Ounces, so 
named from the numbers of those animals which formerly infested 
its banks. Changing our mules at a village called Lagos, consisting 
of a few miserable fazendas, we proceeded a league over a most 
rugged and mountainous road, and passing a ridge, entered on a fine 
country, presenting to view a grand picturesque mountain nearly a 
league distant from us ; about midrway up was a large house, to 
which we directed our course. We forded a rather deep river called 
Rio Negro, on account of the blackness of its waters, caused by the 
decomposition of bituminous or vegetable matter. Its margin, along 



( 208 ) 



which we rode for some distance, presented some fine grazing land. 
Passing through a broken and irregular tract of county, we arrived 
at another deserted village called Gaspar Suares, and rode up to the 
house above-mentioned, the owner of which was from home, but his 
lady received me very politely. Having arrived rather early in the 
evening, I employed myself some time in walking about the grounds : 
the mountain on which the house stands consists almost entirely of 
micaceous iron ore* ; the wall before the door of the house was built 
of that substance. In some parts, to my great surprise, I observed 
it lying in regular strata, not more than an inch in thickness, between 
beds of white sand. The quantity of ore found in this neighbour- 
hood is so considerable as to have induced Government to commence 
an iron-work, under the direction of Mr. Fernando de Camara,Intend- 
ant of the Diamond District. In aid of this undertaking, the gen- 
tleman, at whose house I was a guest, has presented a square league 
of wood-land, the only tract of that description in the neighbourhood. 
The ground for the intended works is marked out, and a few blocks 
of stone are prepared ; but the undertaking seems to go on very 
slowly, and probably will not arrive at any great degree of per- 
fection. 

This hill and the streams near it were formerly rich in gold, but 
they have been completely washed, and are at present as much ex- 
hausted as the works at Itambe. A rivulet which runs over the top 
of the hill afforded conveniences for washings which are very rarely 
to be met with ; it is now intended to be converted to the use of the 
iron manufactory. 

On the following day I continued my route northerly, over a fine 
country, and, after riding, or rather walking, about six miles of bad 
road with wretched mules, ascended a hill abounding with rich com- 
pact iron ore. Two leagues of the way were covered with excellent 



* This substance contains fine-formed octae'dral crystals of magnetic iron. 



( 209 ) 



oxide of iron, and it appeared as if the hills were entirely covered with 
that substance. Without any material occurrence, we arrived at a beau- 
tiful rivulet, near which stood aWjserable hut, where two women were 
weaving cotton. This place, apparently so insignificant, proved one 
of the most interesting, in a mineralogical point of view, which I had 
hitherto visited. It is called Largos, and also bears the name of Oro 
Branco (White Gold), in allusion to a granular substance, not unlike 
gold in size and weight, found in a gold-washing in the bed of the 
stream. This substance, which has since been proved to be platina, 
was discovered many years ago in the cascalhao below the vegetable 
earth, and incumbent on the solid rock, accompanied with gold and 
black oxide of iron. From these circumstances the people judged it 
to be gold united with some other metal, from which it could not 
be separated ; and, as the quantity of real gold found v/as small, and 
the white gold, as they called it, was not known to be of value, the 
work was gradually neglected, and at length abandoned. I procured 
a specimen of the substance : it appeared accompanied with osmium 
and iridium, and was in rougher grains than the platina brought from 
the province of Choco; which latter circumstance may be owing to 
its not having been triturated with mercury. Now that the sub- 
stance is known to be platina, it is doubtful whether the work might 
be resumed with advantage, as the demand for that article is at pre- 
sent so small, that the quantity sold would hardly pay expences. 
Near this place is a work called Mata Cavalhos. 

The rivulet of Largos empties itself into the Rio de St. Antonio, 
along which we rode a small distance, and, proceeding about four 
miles farther, arrived at Concepcao, a large and tolerably handsome 
village. I was conducted to the house of the curate, who kindly as- 
signed to me an apartment for the night, and, perceiving that I was 
unwell, gave me an invitation to rest a day, which I very gladly 
accepted. 

I here received many visits from the villagers, whose curiosity had 
been excited by the news of an Englishman having arrived : some of 

EE • 



( 210 ) 



them were upwards of eighty years of age, and, as they had resided 
here more than fifty, they were able to give many curious accounts of 
the country, and of the progress a«J decline of its mines. I was 
much pleased with the information they communicated, but more so 
with the attention of the good curate, who corrected every misrepre- 
sentation, and seemed anxious that I should not be led into error, 
either through accident or design. By some means or other, an 
opinion circulated among them that I was a physician, and numbers 
of infirm persons, principally old men, women, and children, were 
brought to me for advice. In the evening we were entertained with 
music by some of the younger females, who brought their guitars, and 
sung several pleasing airs. 

I was here shewn a Bootocoody Indian boy, apparently about 
nine years of age, who had been taken about six months before. 
He could not utter a word of Portugueze ; but, from the expression 
of his countenance, he seemed capable of being taught any thing. 
His eyes had so much vivacity in them that they almost spoke, es- 
pecially when his attention was attracted by any thing agreeable, as 
I found by offering him a few sweetmeats, with which he seemed 
much delighted. I examined his features and the construction of 
his frame with some curiosity, as exhibiting the characteristics of the 
singular race of men from whom he sprung. The face was short, the 
mouth rather wide, the nose broad, the eyes large and black, skin of 
a dusky copper-colour, hair jet black, strong, straight, and of regular 
length, limbs stout and well-proportioned, feet large, probably from 
going without shoes. He lived with a poor woman, who clothed 
and brought him up exactly as one of her family. On enquiring how 
he came there, I was informed that he belonged to a party of Indians 
who were surprised at a place about six leagues distant, and all either 
fell or escaped, except this little fellow, who was taken care of, and 
brought hither by an officer resident in the village. 

Being still too unwell to travel, I remained another day, and met 
with every attention and care from the good clergyman and his 



( 211 ) 



housekeeper. In the course of conversation, he informed me that 
he studied and had been ordained at St. Paul's ; and when he learnt 
that I had been there so recently, seemed much pleased, and asked 
me many questions respecting the present state of that city, which 
shewed his attachment to it as the scene of his youthful days. 

About a week previous to my arrival, this village was the scene of 
a somewhat remarkable adventure. A iropero* going to Riode Ja- 
neiro with some loaded mules, was overtaken by two cavalry soldiers, 
who ordered him to surrender his fowling-piece ; which being done, 
they bored the butt-end with a gimblet, and finding it hollow, took 
off the iron from the end, where they found a cavity containing about 
three hundred carats of diamonds, which they immediately seized. 
The man in vain protested his innocence, stating that he had bought 
the gun of a friend : he was hurried away, and thrown into prison at 
Tejuco, where I afterwards saw him. The diamonds were con- 
fiscated, and the soldiers received half their value. The fate of this 
man is a dreadful instance of the rigour of the existing laws : he will 
forfeit all his property, and be confined, probably, for the remainder 
of his days in a loathsome prison, among felons and murderers. 
What must be the feelings (if, indeed, he can be said to possess any) 
of the man who betrayed him ; for, doubtless, the poor fellow owed 
his misfortune to some secret villain, in the shape of a confidential 
friend, who, having learned his mode of carrying diamonds concealed, 
had, for the sake of a paltry premium, or from some mean-spirited 
motive, given notice of it to Government ! How must the miscreant 
recoil at having brought to irreparable ruin, and plunged into that 
lowest state of human misery, perpetual imprisonment, a man who 
not only claimed his sympathy as a fellow-creature, but was united 
to him by the ties of friendship ! 



* An owner of mules, who travels with a number of them, carrying goods for other per- 
sons, as well as on his own account. 

E E 2 



( 212 ) 



The village of Concepcao seemed to me large enough to contain 
two thousand inhabitants, but, like most others in this exhausted 
district, it was fast hastening to decay. The rent of a tolerable 
house is about two shillings a month. The only manufacture carried 
on here is that of a little cotton, which is spun by the hand, and 
w r oven into coarse shirting. It appears to be a maxim among the in- 
habitants rather to go naked, than labour to clothe themselves. The 
vestiges of old gold-washings in every direction, and the slight quan- 
tities still found in all parts, from the summits of the mountains to 
their bases, might almost lead a traveller to conclude that the whole 
country was at one period auriferous. The surface is in general fine 
red earth, and in many parts presents fine situations for iron-works, 
as there is ore and wood in abundance. It is much to be wished 
that such works were established ; for iron is so dear at Concepcao, 
and the people in general so poor, that the mules have seldom a shoe 
to their feet, which is irksome to the riders, and dangerous to the 
animals themselves, as they are continually coming down, particu- 
larly when ascending a clay-hill, after a shower of rain. 

Neither here, nor in any other part of my journey from Villa Rica, 
did I observe any limestone, though I was informed that consider- 
able quantities were found near Sahara. 

Taking leave of the worthy curate, I set out for Tapinha-canga*, 
distant about thirty miles. After an unpleasant ride through a 
rough stony country, abounding in quartz laminated with schistus, I 
reached a village called Corvos, where there are some gold- washings, 
one of which produced, about half a year ago, a net profit of 8001., 
though only four negroes were employed a month upon it. The road 
to the village above-mentioned led through a most uneven tract, pre- 
senting formidable precipices, which required us to travel with so 
much caution, that we did not complete our journey until an hour 



* Canga is the name of ferruginous quartz, fragments of which abound in this town, 
and are used for paving the streets. 



( 213 ) 



after sun-set. 1 was received into a very respectable house, which 
had the appearance of former opulence. The owner, Captain Bom 
Jarden, a venerable old gentleman, came to welcome me : on enter- 
ing into conversation, he informed me that he had emigrated hither 
from Oporto at the age of seventeen, and had lived here sixty-two 
years. He was tempted to settle here by the hope of participating 
in the ricfr treasures for which the country was then famed ; but he 
arrived two or three years too late : the mines were already on the 
decline, and he was obliged to turn his attention to agricultural pur- 
suits, in which he persevered with such success that he was enabled 
to realize a comfortable independency, and to bring up a numerous 
family in credit and respectability. It had been well if his neigh- 
bours had profited by so eminent an example, instead of deserting 
the country when the gold on its surface disappeared. That many 
did so was evident from the declining state of the village ; a great 
number of its houses were falling to decay, others were untenanted, 
and its population, which formerly amounted to near three thousand, 
was dwindled to a third of that amount. 

Continuing my journe}' next day, 1 crossed the ridge of a lofty 
chain of mountains, abounding with streams, that were much swoln 
in consequence of the late rains ; one of the largest, called Rio dos 
Peches, I forded thrice, and entered on a wide champaign country. 
In many parts I saw large tracts of bare places, where the grit-stone 
alternated with argillaceous schistus. The next ten miles led through 
an elevated and fertile plain, intersected with rivulets in every direc- 
tion, and well calculated for farming, but very thinly inhabited. 
Early in the afternoon I reached an eminence, from which I had a 
fine view of Villa do Principe, situated on the rise of a lofty hill op- 
posite, the base of which was washed by a rivulet called Corvinha de 
Quatro Vengtems*. On arriving in the town, I was conducted to 



* Four vengtems are nearly equal to a shilling of our money. When this rivulet was first 
washed for gold, the quantity produced by each gamella amounted in value to that sum. As 



( 214 ) 



to the house of the governor, or chief magistrate, who received me 
very politely, and introduced me to his lady and a party of friends, 
with whom I took tea. 

Villa do Principe was established as a eomarco, or district, in the 
year 1730, when the gold-washings were most productive : but it 
dates its origin fifteen years earlier, at which period the place was 
discovered by the Paulistas, who had then commenced to migrate 
from Villa Rica and the adjacent settlements. The town at present 
contains about five thousand inhabitants, the most considerable pro- 
portion of whom are shopkeepers, and the rest artisans, farmers, 
miners, and labourers. Here is a house of permutation, to which 
every miner in the district brings the gold he obtains, and pays the 
royal fifth, as is done in Villa Rica. The ouvidor holds the office of 
mint-master, which renders his situation one of the best in the gift of 
the crown. Here are several inferior officers belonging to various 
departments of the public service. As this town is situated very 
near the confines of the Diamond District, and on the high road 
leading to it, the strictest regulations prevail respecting the passage 
of all persons thither. No one, except travellers on business, with 
certificates to that effect, is suffered to proceed, until a formal notifi- 
cation has been made to the governor of that district ; the laws of 
which are so strict, that any person found within it, out of the regu- 
lar road, is liable to be apprehended on suspicion, and subjected to 
an examination, which frequently occasions much trouble and delay. 

The country around Villa do Principe is very fine and open, being 
free from those impenetrable woods, which occur so frequently in 



the cascalhao then lay near the surface, and required very little trouble to get at, one washer 
could clear about twelve bowls-ful per hour, which was considered a comparatively rich 
return. 

In the mines they have two methods of estimating the quantity produced : for example ; 
Quatro Vengtems here mean four vengtems of gold, which is equal to eight of copper ; 
whereas, in Rio de Janeiro, the same expression implies four vengtems of copper. 



( 215 ) 



other parts of the province. Its soil is in general very productive, 
and the climate mild and salubrious. 

At a washing about six leagues distant, a lump of gold was found 
of several pounds weight. From the same place I procured some 
above two ounces, and obtained the large crystals now in my posses- 
sion, one of which is considered as unique. 

I quitted Villa do Principe about noon on the day following, after 
making my acknowledgments for the polite attentions of the governor, 
who kindly sent a servant to attend me the first league of the road. 
This man I commissioned, under a promise of pecuniary recom- 
pence, to collect for me land-shells and insects, against my return, 
which I expected would take place in two or three months ; and, 
from the aptness with which he received my directions, (joined to 
the prospect of emolument,) I had little doubt that he would attend 
to them. 

As we journeyed on, I perceived that the country bore an aspect 
entirely different from that in the neighbourhood of Villa do Prin- 
cipe : its surface, consisting of coarse sand and rounded quartz peb- 
bles, was almost destitute of wood or herbage. One hillock near 
the road exhibited perpendicular laminse of micaceous grit, which, 
on alighting from my horse and examining, I found to be flexible. 
My soldier, hearing me remark that the country bore characteristics 
which I had never observed elsewhere, exclaimed, " Senhor, we are 
in the Diamond District." This circumstance, which I had not be- 
fore thought of, fully accounted for the change. We travelled over a 
very sterile country for the first four leagues, and passed several high 
mountains. Towards the close of the day we reached an eminence, 
from which we beheld a most romantic cluster of dwellings, resem- 
bling a labyrinth, or a negroes-town in Africa. We descended the 
hill, and approached the place ; when, it being nearly dark, I was 
conducted to a house much larger than any of the others, where I 
learnt that the establishment was a diamond-work called San Gon- 
zales, the first which occurs in the Cerro do Frio. It has been some 



( 216 ) 



time on the decline, and employs about 200 negroes. The in-* 
tendant, a very intelligent man, had been apprised of our coming by 
a letter from the governor at Tejuco, and gave me a very friendly recep- 
tion. While engaged in conversation with him, I observed (it being 
now moon-light) some fine cows in front of the premises, and con- 
cluded that they were come to be milked, but this T understood was 
not the case. They were licking the door-posts and sides of the 
houses with much apparent eagerness, and, on enquiring what this 
signified, I was told that they wanted salt. They were so tame and 
gentle that, on holding out my hand, they licked it ; when, being de- 
sirous to see the effect which salt produced on them, I procured 
some, and gave them a handful : but they became so very unruly 
for more, that had I not immediately desisted and retired, their fury 
might have produced serious consequences. — This article is so ne- 
cessary for the support of the cattle, that their very existence de- 
pends on it, yet it is encumbered with a heavier duty than any other 
article of import, iron alone excepted. Surely, when it is considered 
that vast herds are daily sent from this province to Rio de Janeiro, 
each paying a toll of nearly twelve shillings on crossing the river 
Paraibuna, the impolicy of this duty must be self-evident, because, 
in raising the price of the commodity to an excessive degree, it 
checks the breed of cattle, and thus ultimately defeats the purpose 
for which it was imposed. 

The next day, before we left this romantic place, I devoted some 
time to an examination of the refuse-hillocks contiguous to the 
diamond works, but found nothing among the heaps of quartzose 
stones, which had been washed when this place was more in repute. 
I here noticed a thin stratum below the roots of the grass, which I 
had elsewhere seen, but never so distinctly characteristic. It is 
called burgalhao, and consists of quartz pebbles, generally angular, 
and not unfrequently large beds of solid quartz not more than four 
or five inches thick. This stratum does not appear to have been 
formed at the same time or by the same means as the cascalhao, 

9 



( 217 ) 



from which it is invariably separated by a stratum of vegetable 
earth unequal in thickness ; it has more the appearance of a thin 
bed of quartz subsequently shattered into innumerable fragments. 

Having taken leave of the administrator, I proceeded through a 
continuation of mountainous and sterile country, very thinly inha- 
bited. I stopt at one of the best of the few miserable houses on 
the road to procure some refreshment. There was a half-starved 
cat in the door- way, the sight of which plainly evinced to me 
what I had to expect. Poor animal, thought I, the habitation in 
which thou existest, will not afford maintenance for a mouse, much 
less for thee ! While musing on this picture of distress and famine, 
a poor meagre woman came to the door, of whom I requested a 
little water, which she brought me, and while I was drinking it she 
began to implore charity. Her countenance had already expressed 
what her tongue now uttered : I gave her the few provisions my 
soldiers had with them, together with a small piece of money, and 
took leave; — the last words I heard from her were those of gra- 
titude. 

Ere we arrived at this place, we had seen Tejuco at full twelve 
miles distance, and were now much nearer. We crossed two rapid 
rivulets, one of them called Rio Negro, the waters of which were of 
a very black colour, and afterwards passed a guard-house, or register, 
called Mielho Verde, situated near a stream of the same name, 
formerly much noted for diamonds. Here a band of soldiers are 
stationed, who are always on the alert, riding after and examining 
passengers. The country is extremely rough, and destitute of vege- 
tation, covered in all directions with grit-stone rocks full of rounded 
quartzose pebbles. We rode two miles along the Corvinha de St. 
Francisco, which runs through the ravine at the foot of the mount- 
ain on the side of which Tejuco is built, presenting much the 
same appearance as Villa Rica. I entered the town, and took up 
my abode at the best inn, which contained some neat rooms, and 
afforded tolerable accommodations. 

T F 



( 218 ) 



This was Sunday the 17th of September, being one month since 
my departure from Rio de Janeiro, during which time I had been 
almost continually on horseback ; for the time I remained at Villa 
Rica was principally occupied in journeys to various places in the 
neighbourhood. 



( 219 ) 



CHAP. XIII. 

Visit to the Diamond Works on the River Jigitonhonha. — General 
Description of the Works. — Mode of Washing. — Return to Te- 
jnco. — Visit to the Treasury.- -Excursion to Rio Par do. — Mis- 
cellaneous Remarks. 

r T^HE continual fatigues, and want of accommodation on the 
journey, had rendered me very unwell, and I was therefore de- 
sirous of resting a week at Tejuco before I proceeded to the diamond 
mines ; but, learning that I had been expected for the last two or 
three days, I sent one of my soldiers up to the house of Mr. Fernan- 
do de Camara, the governor, to announce my arrival, and to state 
that I was prevented by indisposition from personally paying my 
respects to him. He immediately came with a few friends to visit 
me, gave me a most hearty welcome to Tejuco, and staid with me 
at least three hours. I delivered to him my public and private letters', 
passports, and other credentials, which he perused with great satis- 
faction, observing to the Ouvidor and his friends, that I possessed 
the same privileges which they did, having permission from the 
court to see every place I wished, which they were directed to 
shew me. He then told me that, in expectation of my arrival, 
he had delayed a journey to the greatest of the diamond works, called 
Mandanga, situated on the river Jigitonhonha, which employs about 
a thousand negroes, and on particular occasions double that num- 
ber. He was desirous that I should see this great work with all 
the machinery in operation, which would be very speedily re- 
moved, the late rains having swoln the river so much as to ren- 
der working more, impracticable. He therefore kindly invited 
me to breakfast at his house on the following morning, when he 
would have all in readiness for a journey of about thirty miles to 
the place above-mentioned. 

fp 2 



( 220 ) 



At an early hour I arose ; and, though so unwell as to be scarcely 
more than half alive, I could not resist the favourable opportunity 
now offered me of gratifying the curiosity which had so long occu- 
pied my mind, by visiting the diamond mines, in company with the 
principal officer in the administration of them, who was therefore 
qualified to furnish me with the amplest information. A fine horse 
was waiting for me at the door, and I rode up to the house of the 
governor, who introduced me to his amiable lady, daughters, and 
family, with whom I had the honour to take breakfast. Several 
officers of the diamond establishment arrived on horseback to ac- 
company us, their presence being required on this occasion. 

At nine o'clock we set out, and crossed the ravine, watered by the 
small rivulet of St. Francisco, which separates Tejuco from the op- 
posite mountains. The road was very rough and uneven, continu- 
ally ascending or descending mountains of considerable extent, the 
strata of which were grit alternating with micaceous schistus, and 
presenting an immense quantity of rude masses, composed of grit 
and rounded quartz, forming a loose and friable kind of pudding- 
stone. The country appeared almost destitute of wood, presenting 
occasionally a few poor shrubs ; there were no cattle to be seen, 
yet some of the tracts would certainly maintain sheep in great num- 
bers. Having halted at a place about half way, we descended a 
very steep mountain, full a mile in the declivity, and entered a 
ravine where we crossed a very good wooden bridge over the river 
Jigitonhonha, which is larger than the Derwent at Derby. We 
rode along its margin, where the land appears much richer, pre- 
senting a good vegetable soil covered with underwood ; and, pro- 
ceeding about a league, arrived at the famed place called Mandanga. 
The habitations, which are about one hundred in number, are built 
detached, and are generally of a circular form, with very high 
thatched roofs, like African huts, but much larger. The walls are 
formed of upright stakes, interwoven with small branches and coated 
with clay inside and out. The houses of the officers are of the 



( 221 ) 



same materials but of much more convenient form, and white- 
washed within. Near some of the houses we observed inclosures 
for gardens, which, in some degree, enlivened the prospect, and 
gave an air of comfort to these rude and simple dwellings. 

I remained here five days, during which 1 was occupied in viewing 
and examining various parts of the works, of which I shall here 
attempt to give a general description. 

This rich river, formed by the junction of a number of streams 
which will be hereafter noted, is as wide as the Thames at Windsor, 
and in general from three to nine feet deep. The part now in 
working is a curve or elbow, from which the current is diverted into 
a canal cut across the tongue of land round which it winds, the 
river being stopped just below the head of the canal by an embank- 
ment formed of several thousand bags of sand. This is a Avork of 
considerable magnitude, and requires the co-operation of all the 
negroes to complete it ; for, the river being wide and not very 
shallow, and also occasionally subject to overflows, they have to 
make the embankment so strong as to resist the pressure of the 
water, admitting it to rise four or five feet. 

The deeper parts of the channel of the river are laid dry by 
means of large caissons or chain-pumps, worked by a water-wheel. 
The mud is then carried off, and the cascalhao is dug up and re- 
moved to a convenient place for washing. This labour was, until 
lately, performed by the negroes, who carried the cascalhao in 
gamellas on their heads, but Mr. Camara has formed two inclined 
planes about one hundred yards in length, along which carts are 
drawn by a large water-wheel, divided into two parts, the ladles or 
buckets of which are so constructed that the rotatory motion may 
be altered by changing the current of water from one side to the 
other ; this wheel, by means of a rope made of untanned hides, 
works two carts, one of which descends empty on one inclined plane, 
while the other, loaded with cascalhao, is drawn to the top of the 
other, where it falls into a cradle, empties itself, and descends in its 
turn. At a work called Canjeca, formerly of great importance, 



( m ) 



about a mile up the river on the opposite side, there are three 
cylindrical engines for drawing the cascalhao, like those used in the 
mining country of Derbyshire, and also rail-ways over some un- 
even ground. This was the first and only machinery of consequence 
which I saw in the diamond district, and there appear many ob- 
stacles to the general introduction of it. Timber, when wanted of 
large size, has to be fetched a distance of one hundred miles at a very 
heavy expence ; there are few persons competent to the construc- 
tion of machines, and the workmen dislike to make them, fearing 
that this is only part of a general plan for superseding manual 
labour. 

The stratum of cascalhao consists of the same materials with that 
in the gold district. On many parts, by the edge of the river, are 
large conglomerate masses of rounded pebbles cemented by oxide of 
iron, which sometimes envelop gold and diamonds. They calculate on 
getting as much cascalhao in the dry season as will occupy all their 
hands during the months which are more subject to rain. When 
carried from the bed of the river whence it is dug, it is laid in heaps 
containing apparently from five to fifteen tons each. 

Water is conveyed from a distance, and is distributed to the 
various parts of the works by means of aqueducts, constructed 
with great ingenuity and skill. The method of washing for dia- 
monds at this place is as follows : — A shed is erected in the form 
of a parallelogram, twenty-five or thirty yards long and about fif- 
teen wide, consisting of upright posts which support a roof thatched 
with long grass. Down the middle of the area of this shed a current 
of water is conveyed through a canal covered with strong planks, 
on which the cascalhao is laid two or three feet thick. On 
the other side of the area is a flooring of planks, from four to 
five yards long, imbedded in clay, extending the whole length 
of the shed, and having a slope from the canal, of three or four 
inches to a yard. This flooring is divided into about twenty 
compartments or troughs, each about three feet wide, by means of 
planks placed on their edge. The upper ends of all these troughs 



( 223 ) 



(here called canoes) communicate with the canal, and are so formed 
that water is admitted into them between two planks that are 
about an inch separate. Through this opening the current falls 
about six inches into the trough, and may be directed to any part 
of it, or stopped at pleasure by means of a small quantity of clay. 
For instance, sometimes water is required only from one corner of 
the aperture, then the remaining part is stopped ; sometimes it is 
wanted from the centre, then the extremes are stopped ; and some- 
times only a gentle rill is wanted, then the clay is applied ac- 
cordingly. Along the lower ends of the troughs a small channel is 
dug to carry off the water. 

On the heap of cascalhao, at equal distances, are placed three 
high chairs* for the officers or overseers. After they are seated, the 
negroes enter the troughs, each provided with a rake of a pecu- 
liar form and short handle, with which he rakes into the trough 
about fifty or eighty pounds weight of cascalhao. The water being 
then let in upon it, the cascalhao is :spread abroad and continually 
raked up to the head of the trough, so as to be kept in constant motion. 
This operation is performed for the space of a quarter of an hour ; 
the water then begins to run clearer, having washed the earthy parti- 
cles away, the gravel-like matter is raked up to the end of the trough; 
after the current flows away quite clear, the largest stones are thrown 
out, and afterwards those of inferior size, then the whole is exa- 
mined with great care for diamonds:]:. When a negro finds one, he 
immediately stands upright and claps his hands, then extends them, 



* In order to insure the vigilance of the overseers, these chairs are constructed without 
backs or any other support on which a person can recline. 

f The negroes employed in these works are the property of individuals, who let them to 
hire at the daily rate of three vengtems of gold, equal to about eight-pence, Government 
supplying them with victuals. Every officer of the establishment is allowed the privilege of 
having a certain number of negroes employed. 

£ The negroes are constantly attending to the cascalhao from the very commencement of 
the washings, and frequently find diamonds before this last operation. 

9 



( 224 ) 



holding the gem between his fore-finger and thumb ; an overseer 
receives it from him, and deposits it in a gamella or bowl, suspended 
from the centre of the structure, half full of water. In this vessel 
all the diamonds found in the course of the day are placed, and at 
the close of work are taken out and delivered to the principal 
officer, who, after they have been weighed, registers the particulars 
in a book kept for that purpose. 

When a negro is so fortunate as to find a diamond of the weight 
of an octavo (17§ carats), much ceremony takes place ; he is 
crowned with a wreath of flowers and carried in procession to the 
administrator, who gives him his freedom, by paying his owner for 
it. He also receives a present of new clothes, and is permitted to 
work on his own account. When a stone of eight or ten carats is 
found, the negro receives two new shirts, a complete new suit, with 
a hat and a handsome knife. For smaller stones of trivial amount 
proportionate premiums are given. During my stay at Tejuco a 
stone of l6f carats was found: it was pleasing to see the anxious 
desire manifested by the officers that it might prove heavy enough 
to entitle the poor negro to his freedom, and when on being de- 
livered and weighed, it proved only a carat short of the requisite 
weight, all seemed to sympathize in his disappointment. 

Many precautions are taken to prevent the negroes from em- 
bezzling diamonds. Although they work in a bent position, and 
consequently never know whether the overseers are watching them 
or not, yet it is easy for them to omit gathering any which they 
see, and to place them in a corner of the trough for the purpose of 
secreting them at leisure hours, to prevent which they are frequently 
changed while the operation is going on. A word of command 
being given by the overseers, they instantly move into each others 
troughs, so that no opportunity of collusion can take place. If a 
negro be suspected of having swallowed a diamond, he is confined in 
a strong room until the fact can be ascertained. Formerly the 
punishment inflicted on a negro for smuggling diamonds was con- 



( 225 ) 



fiscation of his person to the state : but it being thought too hard for 
the owner to suffer for the offence of his servant, the penalty has 
been commuted for personal imprisonment and chastisement. This 
is a much lighter punishment than that which their owners or any 
white man would suffer for a similar offence. 

There is no particular regulation respecting the dress of the ne- 
groes : they work in the clothes most suitable to the nature of their 
employment, generally in a waistcoat and a pair of drawers, and not 
naked, as some travellers have stated. Their hours of labour are 
from a little before sun-rise until sun-set, half an hour being allowed 
for breakfast, and two hours at noon. While washing they change 
their posture as often as they please, which is very necessary, as the 
work requires them to place their feet on the edges of the trough, 
and to stoop considerably. This posture is particularly prejudicial 
to young growing negroes, as it renders them in-kneed. Four or 
five times during the day they all rest, when snuff, of which they are 
very fond, is given to them. 

The negroes are formed into working parties, called troops, con- 
taining two hundred each, under the direction of an administrator 
and inferior officers. Each troop has a clergyman and a surgeon to 
attend it. With respect to the subsistence of the negroes, although 
the present governor has in some degree improved it by allowing a 
daily portion of fresh beef, which was m& allowed by his predeces- 
sors, yet I am sorry to observe that 1 is still poor and scanty ; and 
in other respects they are more hardly dealt with than those of any 
other establishment which I visited : notwithstanding this, the 
owners are all anxious to get their negroes into the service, doubtless 
from sinister motives, of which more will be said hereafter. 

The officers are liberally paid, and live in a style of considerable 
elegance, which a stranger would not be led to expect in so remote 
a place. Our tables were daily covered with a profusion of excellent 
viands, served up on fine Wedgewood ware, and the state of their 
household generally corresponded with this essential part of it. 

G G 



( £26* ) 



They were ever ready to assist me in my examination of the works, 
and freely gave me all the necessary information respecting them. 

Having detailed the process of washing for diamonds, I proceed to 
a general description of the situations in which they are found. The 
flat pieces of ground on each side the river are equally rich throughout 
their extent, and hence the officers are enabled to calculate the value 
of an unworked place by comparison with the amount found on 
working in the part adjoining. These known places are left in re- 
serve, and trial is made of more uncertain grounds. The following 
observation I often heard from the intendant : " That piece of 
ground" (speaking of an unworked flat by the side of the river) " will 
yield me ten thousand carats of diamonds whenever we shall be re- 
quired to get them in the regular course of working, or when, on 
any particular occasion, an order from Government arrives, demand- 
ing an extraordinary and immediate supply." 

The substances accompanying diamonds, and considered good in- 
dications of them, are bright bean-like iron ore, a slaty flint^like sub- 
stance, approaching Lydian stone, of fine texture, black oxide of 
iron in great quantities, rounded bits of blue quartz, yellow crystal, 
and other materials entirely different from any thing known to be 
produced in the adjacent mountains. Diamonds are by no means 
peculiar to the beds of rivers or deep ravines ; they have been found 
in cavities and water-courses on the summits of the most lofty 
mountains. 

I had some conversation with the officers respecting the matrix of 
the diamond, not a vestige of which could I trace. They informed 
me that they often found diamonds cemented in pudding-stone, ac- 
companied with grains of gold, but that they always broke them out, 
as they could not enter them in the treasury, or weigh them with 
matter adhering to them. I obtained a mass of pudding-stone, ap- 
parently of very recent formation, cemented by ferruginous matter 
enveloping many grains of gold ; and likewise a few pounds weight 
of the cascalhao in its unwashed state. 



( 227 ) 



This river, and other streams in its vicinity, have been in washing 
many years, and have produced great quantities of diamonds, which 
have ever been reputed of the finest quality. They vary in size ; some 
are so small that four or five are required to weigh one grain, conse- 
quently sixteen or twenty to the carat : there are seldom found more 
than two or three stones of from seventeen to twenty carats in the 
course of a year, and not once in two years is there found through- 
out the whole washings a stone of thirty carats. During the five 
days I was here they were not very successful ; the whole quantity 
found amounted only to forty, the largest of which was only four 
carats, and of a light green colour. 

From the great quantity of debris, or worked cascalhao, in every 
part near the river, it is reasonable to calculate that the works have 
been in operation above forty years ; of course there must arrive a 
period at which they will be exhausted, but there are grounds in the 
neighbourhood, particularly in the Cerro de St. Antonio, and in the 
country now inhabited by the Indians, which will probably afford 
these gems in equal abundance. 

After residing here five days, we visited a diamond work called 
Montero, about two miles up the river, and went a league further to 
a gold-work called Carapata. The cascalhao at this work was taken 
from a part of the river eight feet deep, which formed an eddy under 
a projecting point ; I was shewn a heap of it, that was estimated to 
be worth 10,0001. In removing this heap from its bed, four hun- 
dred negroes had been employed three months ; and to wash it, 
would occupy one hundred men for three months more, the expence 
of both operations amounting to perhaps 1,5001. We arrived at this 
place at eight o'clock in the morning ; six negroes were employed 
four hours in washing two troughs, containing together about a ton 
of cascalhao, when, to my great surprise, after the water ran clear, 
and the large stones were thrown out, the black oxide of iron, of 
which there was great abundance, was fringed with grains of gold, a 
novel and very agreeable sight to a stranger. The gold was taken 

<3r a 2 



( 228 ) 



out at three or four different times, and, when the washing was com- 
pleted, was dried over a fire and weighed : it amounted to nearly 
twenty ounces Troy. This is esteemed a very rich place, and such 
circumstances are of rare occurrence. The whole neighbourhood is 
sterile, presenting the same characteristics as those before described. 
By proper cultivation it might be rendered very productive ; but, as 
the troops of negroes and their officers are continually changing, no 
regular establishments are formed. 

This place probably derived its name from a most disagreeable 
insect, which infests the low brushwood in the neighbourhood. It is 
like a sheep-tick ; and, on getting access to any part of the body, it 
fastens imperceptibly, buries its head under the skin, and draws 
blood until its body is swelled to the size of a bean. If forcibly re- 
moved, it leaves a very deep disagreeable hole, which is frequently 
difficult to heal. The best mode of getting rid of the animal is to 
kill it with either laudanum or oil, and suffer it to remain until it 
dies, when it will drop off. 

In the afternoon we returned to Tejuco by another route more 
mountainous than that by which we had come. Crossing a deep 
ravine, formerly very rich in diamonds, we rode up a mountain full 
a mile on the ascent, and passed several rivulets, Avhich I was in- 
formed had produced many fine stones. These, and in fact all the 
best situations in the district, had been in the possession of the 
smugglers, and were explored by those enterprising men. In the 
course of our journey, I observed that whenever a traveller or a 
negro was seen by any of our party at a distance from the road, a 
soldier was instantly dispatched to bring him to the officers, before 
whom he underwent an examination. 

In the evening we arrived at Tejuco, where I was desirous of re- 
maining a week to recruit my strength. Mr. De Camara ordered my 
baggage to his house, whither I removed in compliance with his 
pressing invitation : he was kind enough to give me his library as 
my private room ; it was extensive and very select, consisting chiefly 

9 



( 229 ) 



of English authors on science. Adjoining to it is a fine garden of 
nearly three acres in extent, planted chiefly with grass. It was for- 
merly a washing, and consequently presented a surface of only refuse 
stones ; but the present proprietor levelled it, brought a little soil 
from various parts, and planted a peculiar variety of grass, which he 
keeps in cutting for his mules. This was the commencement of the 
fruit season ; the peaches, with which the trees were loaded, were 
nearly ripe. The asparagus, and vegetables of every description, 
were very fine. The climate appeared to be mild and genial ; the 
thermometer was generally at 62° at sun-rise, and at mid-da}', in a 
room rather exposed to the sun, rose to 74°. 

Tejuco being situated in a sterile district, which produces nothing 
for the maintenance of its inhabitants, in number about six thousand, 
depends, for a supply of provisions, on farms situated several leagues 
distant. The bread of the country was at this time extremely dear; 
Indian corn, from which it is made, being from 5s. 6d. to 6s. the 
bushel; beans and other pulse in proportion. Beef was very indif- 
ferent, this being the dry season ; pork and poultry were rather 
plentiful. At no place do I recollect to have seen a greater propor- 
tion of indigent people, particularly of females. Full a hundred and 
fifty of these unhappy persons came weekly to receive portions of 
flour which the governor was pleased to allow them. They are 
totally without occupation, here being neither agriculture nor manu- 
factures to afford them any ; yet both these main supports of the 
population might be introduced, if a proper spirit of industry pre- 
vailed among the inhabitants. The land would, with little trouble, 
yield excellent crops, were any kind of inclosures made, which, it 
must be allowed, is an undertaking attended with some difficulties, 
yet not of such magnitude as to render it hopeless. With respect 
to manufactures, a most valuable material is at hand, as cotton from 
Minas Novas, distant only from sixty to one hundred miles, passes 
through this place to the capital. 



( 230 ) 



Yet, notwithstanding the idleness of the inhabitants, Tejuco may 
be called flourishing, on account of the circulation of property 
created by the diamond works. The annual sum paid by Govern- 
ment for the hire of negroes, salaries of officers, and various neces- 
saries, such as nitre and iron, does not amount to less than 35,0001., 
and this, added to the demands of the inhabitants of the town and 
its vicinity, occasions a considerable trade. The shops are stocked 
with English cottons, baizes, and cloths, and other manufactured 
goods ; also hams, cheese, butter, porter, and other articles of con- 
sumption. Mules from Bahia and Rio de Janeiro came loaded with 
them. Great complaints were made among the shopkeepers of the 
bad quality of the cotton goods, and of their losing their colours in 
washing. Some of the principal inhabitants exclaimed against the in- 
troduction of foreign luxuries, and rather wished that their trade with 
England should furnish them the means of working their iron mines, 
and enable them to defend themselves. 

Tejuco, owing to its situation by the side of a hill, is very irregu- 
larly built : its streets are uneven, but the houses in general are well 
constructed and in good condition, compared with those of other 
towns in the interior. Its name, which, in the Portuguese language, 
signifies a muddy place, is derived from places of that description in 
its neighbourhood, which are rendered passable by being covered 
with large pieces of wood. 

Through the kind care and attention of Mr. De Camara and his 
excellent family, my health was in part re-established, and I was 
enabled to ride out daily, occupying myself in seeing all I could, and 
gaining the best information, in which I was assisted by my worthy 
host and all his friends. Our evenings were passed in a most agree- 
able manner, among the parties which regularly assembled at the 
intendant's house, consisting of some of the principal inhabitants of 
the town. In these parties the gentlemen engage at whist, and the 
ladies take tea and play round games, or enter into conversation on 
the passing occurrences of the day. In no part of Brazil did I meet 



( 231 ) 



with society so select and agreeable ; this may certainly be called 
the court of the mining district. In their manners there was no cere- 
monious reserve or courtly refinement, but their whole demeanour 
was genteel and well-bred, enlivened by an ease and good humour 
which the affability of the chief and his amiable lady and daughters 
ever tended to promote. The company all dressed after the English 
mode, and in dresses of English manufacture : the gentlemen were 
almost all distinguished with stars, yet they formed a constellation 
far inferior in brilliancy to that of the ladies. 

I was invited to pay a visit to the treasury, which can only be 
viewed when a meeting of officers is called, as the treasure is kept in 
chests, under three distinct locks, the keys of which are entrusted to 
three several officers, who are all required to be present at the open- 
ing. They here shewed me the diamonds taken from the tropero 
at Concepcao, which were in general much better than those from 
the mines worked by Government. One about eleven carats was a 
very fine stone, perfectly crystallized, in the form of an octaedron. 
The unfortunate man from whom they were taken, I was informed, 
was very ill in prison. I was then shewn about eight hundred carats, 
found in the regular course of washing; they were in general very 
small, not one exceeding five carats. I observed one perfectly round, 
and several coloured. Those with a dark green crust upon them 
were, they informed me, when cut, of the purest water. 

Here the diamonds found in the district are deposited monthly, as 
they are received from the different works. They are carefully 
weighed, and some selected and kept separate. The average quan- 
tity obtained may be estimated at from 20,000 to 25,000 carats an- 
nually, which are sent under a military escort to Rio, and there 
lodged in the treasury. 

The diamonds are tied up in black silk bags, and deposited in 
elegant inner cabinets, the whole of which are locked up in strong 
chests bound with iron. 



( 232 ) 



They then shewed me the gold, which was in large bars, weighing 
from five to ten pounds each, the whole of which I estimated at full 
150lbs. weight. It was found in the district of Cerro do Frio, and 
was reserved to pay part of the expences attending the establish- 
ment. 

An excursion was some days afterwards proposed to another dia- 
mond work, called Rio Pardo, distant about twenty miles in a north- 
west direction. After proceeding a third of the way, over a country 
covered with a poor wiry sort of grass, we passed several fine falls of 
water, and crossed a ridge of mountains. The land as we advanced 
appeared much better, though still very naked, having only a few 
poor crooked small trees, that rather increased than took from its 
desolate appearance. 

We passed through Chapada, a little dirty village, once famous 
for its washings, as were all the streams and ravines in the vicinity, and 
proceeded over some good clay-land, and a considerable tract of 
peat-moss, well watered by streams which burst in all directions from 
the hills. The country was open, and had a most romantic appear- 
ance, caused by a quantity of low rocks of soft pudding-stone, lami- 
nated, which lay on the surface in the most irregular forms. These 
lands were well calculated for pasturage, particularly in the sea- 
son of abundance, but I was told that the cattle put to graze upon 
them were frequently stolen by the negroes*, and that there were 
many noxious plants in the herbage which proved fatal to the beasts 
that ate them. 

We arrived at the houses of the establishment about eleven in the 
forenoon, and walked four miles farther to the diamond works, on 
which a full troop of negroes were then employed. Rio Pardo is a 
dirty pal try -looking rivulet, which runs into the Rio Velho : in some 



* Probably fugitive negroes, who subsist in this remote district by plunder and smug-< 
gling. 



( 233 ) 



parts it is confined by shelving rocks of quartz, through which it 
runs rapidly ; in others it takes a serpentine course, and forms 
eddies, which are called cald rones, on account of their resemblance 
to the cavity of a boiler. The bed of the river, though confined, 
has a stratum of cascalhao of variable thickness, which, after the 
current has been diverted, is dug up, and washed in the same way 
as at Jigitonhonha. The caldrones, or holes, formerly eddies, butjiow 
partly filled with cascalhao, so as to be no more than three or four 
feet deep, are frequently found to contain many diamonds ; one of 
them, which was cleared by four men in as many days, produced 
one hundred and eighty carats. 

Rio Pardo, though paltry and insignificant in its appearance, has 
produced as large a quantity of the most precious gems as any river 
in the district. The rough blueish-green-coloured diamonds, for- 
merly so much esteemed by the Hollanders, continue to be found 
here, and the stones of this rivulet are to this day reputed the most 
valuable in Brazil. The accompanying substances are somewhat dif- 
ferent from those of the washings at Mandanga ; here is no bean-like 
iron ore, but a considerable quantity of flinty slate-like Lydian stone, 
in various shapes and sizes, and very small black oxide of iron ; the 
earthy matter is also much finer than at the above place. I was in- 
formed that there remained as much unworked ground as would oc- 
cupy a hundred negroes full twenty years. 

Rio Pardo runs about a league to the westward of Capelho Velho, 
which is a chapel on a mountain, washed at its base by a stream 
called Corgo de Capelho Velho, which some years ago was worked, 
and produced diamonds of great size and superior brilliancy. The 
rivulets to the eastward of this ridge of mountains run into the Jigi- 
tonhonha ; those to the westward have their course into the Rio 
Velho, which flows into the Rio de San Francisco. The height of 
the mountains I had no means of ascertaining, but they are con- 
sidered as undoubtedly the highest in Brazil. The air in this ele- 
vated region is pure and rather keen ; the thermometer in the morn- 

H H 



( 234 ) 



ings and evenings stood at 62, and at mid-day at 70. In all the 
parts which I visited the land appeared favourable for the growth of 
almost every species of produce, and, if properly inclosed and culti- 
vated, might in no long time become the granary of the district. 

On our return to Tejuco I was shewn several dwarfish trees, of the 
height and size of a common crab-tree, with extremely crooked 
branches ; and was informed that they were a species of the quercus 
suber. I cut from them some pieces of bark about an inch in thick- 
ness, which were elastic, and actually proved to be cork. It seemed 
to me a question of considerable interest, whether these trees, 
if regularly planted and attended to, might not produce cork 
of as good a quality as that which we obtain from the Mediterra- 
nean. 

After resting a few days, I accompanied the intendant to a small 
diamond work called Corrolina, and returned the same day. This 
work some years ago produced many good stones, but at present it 
employs very few people. The mode of washing is exactly the same 
with that practised at Mandanga. 

At Tejuco some tolerably good barley was shewn tome; it was 
not so heavy as that of our best from Norfolk, and was but little 
known. The intendant uses it as provender for his mules whenever 
he can obtain it. On examining the sample, I could not but reflect 
that, if land so ill-managed produced such barley, how much supe- 
rior would be the quality of the grain under good management. 

At a subsequent period of my visit, the intendant, with whom 
malt-liquor is a favourite beverage, expressed a great desire to see 
some of the barley converted into malt, in order to brew beer, and, 
after repeated solicitations, I undertook to make the experiment. 
A quantity was procured, which I endeavoured to prepare in the 
best manner that circumstances would allow. Having steeped it the 
requisite time, I put it on a cold floor, and managed it as is custom- 
ary in our malt-houses ; when it had germinated sufficiently, I dried 
it over a slow fire ; afterwards, having cleansed it from the combs 

9 



( 235 ) 



by rubbing, I crushed it, and finally mashed it. The infusion pro- 
duced a tolerable wort, which, however, I did not deem sufficiently 
good, as it wanted saccharine matter: this deficiency I supplied by 
the admixture of a small quantity of sugar. It was then boiled until 
it was judged of a proper consistency, and a very pleasant bitter was 
added instead of hops. The fermentation I endeavoured to promote 
with leaven, which had been prepared a few days before, and, when 
that process had terminated, the liquor was put into small casks, 
which we stopped close. Though it might not prove good, from the 
hasty manner in which the process was conducted, yet the mode of 
preparing it was exemplified, which was the main purpose of the ex- 
periment. It appeared to me by no means impossible either to 
make malt or to brew beer, if proper places were made under-ground, 
so as to ensure a moderate degree of cold for the operation of malt- 
ing, and for the subsequent processes. Sugar is here so abundant, 
that any quantity of saccharine matter might be added to improve 
the poorness of the malt; and it is highly probable that a very plea- 
sant beverage might be made, which would relieve the inhabitants 
of this remote district from the necessity of having recourse to the 
metropolis for bad wines, and from the ill effects which proceed from 
drinking bad spirits distilled in the vicinity. 

Many parts of this fine country abound in oranges, pines, peaches, 
guavas, and a great variety of indigenous fruits, both sweet and acid, 
particularly the Jaboticubi, which is very rich in mucilaginous mat- 
ter, yet no attempt has hitherto been made to obtain wine from any 
of them. Ginger and pepper grow here spontaneously, and many 
spices might probably be cultivated with success. 

Grass for cattle was as dear at Tejuco as at Rio de Janeiro, and 
the small quantity which cost eight-pence would scarcely suffice a 
mule a day. The intendant and the captain of the cavalry had each 
of them about two acres under cultivation, of a species called Engor- 
do dos Cavalhos (fattener of horses), which grew from five to seven 
feet high, with a thick esculent stem, and long lancet-shaped leaves. 

h h 2 



( 236 ) 



It has a large fibrous root, and is well-calculated for stony ground 
where there is little earth ; it even grew among rounded stones 
that had been washed three years before*. 

The intendant, who had a taste for rural economy, and more par- 
ticularly his lady, were very anxious to make their own butter and 
cheese, and expressed a great desire to be instructed in the process 
as practised in England, though milk was very scarce ; and it was 
not without much difficulty that, after sending a few miles, about 
three gallons were collected. In the mean time such household 
utensils as were most fit for the purpose having been made ready, 
and others procured, very excellent butter was produced, and after- 
wards a few cheeses were made, which there was every reason to sup- 
pose would prove good. The lady interested herself greatly in the ex- 
periment, not only performing part of the operations, with the assist- 
ance of her daughter* but inviting several of her friends in the town 
to see with what little trouble the processes were performed, and 
distributing the products among them >f : — a rare example of in- 
dustry! I am decidedly of opinion that, were the females of 
Brazil better educated, especially in whatever relates to domestic 
economy, and were they accustomed to see the concerns of a 
household conducted with regularity and order, they would be 
very different subjects of society ; for I have ever observed in 
them that inquisitive disposition and desire of information, which 

'inn irioii aniw fiiufdo oJ sbxm ti&kl^vMd tm\ iqai^in on 'to'f 

* It was then in seed, of which I collected a small quantity ; since my return, I 
have sent part of it to the Agricultural Society, and the remainder I have distributed 
among gentlemen who will endeavour to promote its growth in this country. It is 
rather a hardy grass, as it grew in situations which were all so cold, that the bananas 
and coffees were frequently blighted. 

f The ladies particularly wished to have the cheese of a fine colour, like that sent 
thither from England •, and I was at no loss for an ingredient for tinging the milk, as 
the tree, which produces the seed from which annatto is made, grew spontaneously in 
the neighbourhood. 



( 237 ) 

may be called the first step to improvement. But what can be 
expected from ill-educated females, reared from their infancy 
among negras, in miserable houses, scarcely affording a shelter 
from the rain or a shade from the sun, and destitute of every ray 
of comfort ! 



i)OK] 



i/jL'ifXjrno'r;:'. e inj 

(I'Wi'J) Ol nil h'3%1 



Ibvf.aa /ytodi bobieox oil v.- sno. 



019 l'l flW0tl3t VuIOilifUO,: O'lOHt ft',: 



( 238 > 



»j tfg r £firb'iOfrj5 t f / b^J5a»' :: - e ^W)ff - 9fdr/f98!l» (if pBtigSfl 

'7GT 7/1979 !(> 9hi*f*89'5 bfTC e fffir» 9fff fffO'rt of>Blf» 0 TO fffJtTf 9<h rflOT* 

CHAP. XIV. 

Some Account of the Districts of Minas Novas and Paracatu. — Of 
the large Diamond found in the River Abaite. 

JT was my intention to have continued my journey to Minas Novas, 
and from thence westward to Paracatu, and to have returned by 
Abaite, a place that has produced many large diamonds, though 
generally of inferior quality. This design I was prevented from ac- 
complishing by illness, being attacked with a violent sciatic com- 
plaint, accompanied with great debility in the right side, which 
obliged me to return as soon as possible. While I remained at 
Tejuco, for the purpose of regaining strength sufficient to encounter 
the fatigues of a journey back to the capital, I employed myself in 
collecting information respecting these districts from intelligent per- 
sons who resided there, as well as from officers on the establishment. 
The following brief description is the result of the communications 
with which they favoured me. 

The principal village in Minas Novas, called Tocaya, is thirty- 
five leagues distant from Tejuco, in a north-easterly direction. 
The road thither is parallel with the river. Jigitonhonha, which 
runs from two to five leagues westward of it*. Numerous 
rivulets flow into it in this direction, in some of which are 
found white topazes, more commonly known here by the name of 
minas novas. They are pretty pellucid pebbles, generally rounded, 



* On the road there are numerous farm-houses, which afford sufficient accommodation 
for a traveller to pass a night. They in general belong to persons resident in Tejuco, 
where their produce is sold. 



( '239 ) 



though sometimes they occur perfectly crystallized, in the same form 
as the yellow topaz. Blue topazes and agua-marinas are also found 
here; some of the former are of a singular variety, being in one 
part blue, and in the other, clear and pellucid. This neighbourhood 
is also noted for producing the beautiful chryso-beryl, which is much 
esteemed by the higher orders of society in Brazil, and in great 
request among the jewellers of Rio de Janeiro. These gems rarely 
occur crystallized ; they sell at considerable prices in their rough 
state, and are much more valued in America than in England, 
where, indeed, they are little known, or they would be more highly 
appreciated, being, when polished, of great brilliancy and very 
beautiful. i i 

To the westward of the river Jigitonhonha, arid opposite the vil- 
lage of Bom Successo, is the Cerro of Sant Antonio, a place much 
famed for diamonds, which are said to be of an indifferent quality. 
There are, also, other parts, well known to many of the inhabitants 
of the district as being rich in these treasures. 

The country is very fertile, and produces a great variety of the 
finest woods for cabinet-works ; also numerous fruits, and most ex- 
quisite vanilla, which grows spontaneously. The land, being less 
elevated* than Cerro do Frio, is said to be much warmer, and is highly 
favourable to the growth of sugar and coffee. The plantations are 
chiefly of cotton, which is reputed to be equal in colour and quality 
to that of Pernambuco. It is transported to Rio de Janeiro on 
mules, and many hundreds of those useful animals are continually 
employed in this commerce. A troop of loaded mules are full three 



* In some of the low swampy tracts large serpents are notuncommon. AtTejuco I was 
shewn the skin of a young one, said to be of the Boa Constrictor genus. It was twenty-four 
feet in length, and about twenty inches in circumference. To relate the stories told of 
these reptiles, — of their catching bullocks, and afterwards swallowing them, — would 
ill-become a work of veracity ; the horned cattle of Minas Novas being as large, though 
not so full of flesh, as ours in England. 



( 240 ) 



months, and sometimes four, in going, and the same time in return- 
ing. These animals in this district are double the price that they 
are in St. Paul's. The journeys are attended with considerable ex- 
pence and difficulty ; Indian corn must be daily bought for their use ; 
and, notwithstanding the great attention paid to them on the rOad, 
many die, and others are frequently lamed and disabled. Their 
burdens are divided into two equal parts, and suspended on a pack- 
saddle of peculiar make by straps of raw hide. The average burden 
is nine arrobas, nearly equal to three hundred pounds weight, the 
carriage-ex pence of which, from Rio de Janeiro to Minas Novas, is 
six or seven pounds sterling ; to Tejuco five pounds; to Villa Rica 
about three. 

The trade to Minas Novas from Rio de Janeiro consists princi- 
pally in negroes, iron, salt, woollens, hats, printed cottons, hard-ware, 
arms, and some fancy articles, a little wine and oil, salt-fish, and 
butter. Few luxuries enter these remote parts, the inhabitants seek- 
ing for little beyond mere necessaries. 

Minas Novas is under the jurisdiction of the Ouvidor of Villa do 
Principe, who goes thither once a year to settle disputes, administer 
justice, and discharge other duties belonging to his office. 

At Tocaya the Jigitonhonha flows into a larger river, called Rio 
Grande, which, taking an easterly direction, enters the sea in lat. 16° 
20' south, near Porto Seguro. A gentleman with whom I was ac- 
quainted undertook to navigate this fine river from Tocaya to the 
sea, and, as the current was rapid, he performed the task in six 
days. On his return, which occupied fifteen days, he observed 
several tributary rivers, the communications of which are unknown, 
as they rise in the country inhabited by the Indians. The river 
being free from falls, may in time be frequented by vessels from sea, 
for I did not learn that its entrance was shallow or unfit for naviga- 
tion. Probably the land about it is low and marshy, which may be 
the reason that it is so little known. 



( 241 ) 



It cannot be too much recommended to the Government of Brazil 
immediately to order a survey of this river, which might be per- 
formed in one of their launches in two months at little or no expence, 
and, were it found necessary, a chain of connection might be esta- 
blished from its mouth to Tocaya. The benefits resulting to the in- 
habitants from opening the navigation may be easily conceived. 
The produce of the country, its cotton, coffee, and sugar, its rich 
cabinet-woods, and many other valuable articles, would be brought 
into active commerce ; extensive plantations would be established, 
and the whole territory would be improved. It is true that the com- 
merce of the district would flow through another channel, and the 
tolls paid on passing the Paraibuna, to and from the capital, would 
be a little diminished : but surely the policy of Government is not 
so confined as to allow that consideration to have any weight against 
a measure of such national importance, when it is obvious that one 
of the greatest disadvantages under which the empire of Brazil 
labours, is the want of commerce on all its rivers, except the Rio 
Grande de St. Pedro. 

The population of Minas Novas is thin, compared with its extent, 
but is daily increasing. It does not appear that mining is the object 
which attracts settlers, though there is a considerable quantity of 
stones exported, which are found only here, as has been before ob- 
served. 

Where the rivers are deep it is very difficult to raise the cascalhao 
from their beds, in order to wash it for gold, Sec; for this 
purpose various trivial and ineffectual methods are practised : it 
would be highly conducive to the interest of the proprietor, as well 
as of the state, to have rafts or boats constructed, and to adopt the 
machinery used by the ballast-heavers on the river Thames, by means 
of which the cascalhao might be raised, even from a depth of twenty 
feet, however rapid were the current. This machinery is highly to 
be recommended, not only in this district but throughout the mining 
country ; were a model of it made by order of Government, and the 

i i 



( 242 ) 



requisite iron-work prepared in Rio de Janeiro, (if necessary,) and 
admitted into the mining country, free of duty, there would probably 
be such an increase of gold obtained by it, that the proportionate 
augmentation of the royal fifths would amply repay the expence of 
introducing the improvement. 

Paracatu is the principal village or town of a district of the same 
name, which lies about ninety leagues north-west of Tejuco, border- 
ing on the Capitania of Goyazes, from which it is separated by a 
chain of high mountains that take a northerly direction. The nu- 
merous rivers which rise on the eastern side of the mountains, and 
flow into the great river St. Francisco, are rich in gold. The popu- 
lation of the village is estimated at above a thousand souls, and will 
shortly be more numerous, as the reputed richness of some late dis- 
coveries has tempted many families to migrate thither. It has all 
the advantages of a high and healthy situation, in the midst of a 
most fertile country, and has considerable intercourse with Sahara 
and Villa Rica, where the gold procured in its vicinity is permuted. 
It is governed by a Captain Mor, who is subordinate to the governor 
of the latter place, to whom all disputes of consequence are referred. 
To the southward is the rich distacamento of Rio Plata, a river that 
yields fine diamonds, and has been much frequented by many ad- 
venturers, who, when discovered and seized, are called smugglers. 
A strong guard of soldiers is stationed here to prevent the precious 
stones from being sought for clandestinely. 

A few leagues to the north of the Rio Plata is the rivulet named 
Abaite, celebrated for having produced the largest diamond in the 
Prince's possession, which was found about twelve years ago. 
Though this circumstance has been already briefly stated, it may be 
allowed me in this place to relate the particulars as they were de- 
tailed to me during my stay at Tejuco. Three men, having been 
found guilty of high crimes, were banished into the interior, and 
ordered not to approach any of the capital towns, or to remain in 
civilized society, on pain of perpetual imprisonment. Driven by this 



C 243 ) 

hard sentence into the most unfrequented part of the country, the}' 
endeavoured to explore new mines or new productions, in the hope 
that, sooner or later, they might have the good fortune to make some 
important discovery, which would obtain a reversal of their sentence, 
and enable them to regain their station in society. They wandered 
about in this neighbourhood, making frequent searches in its various 
rivers for more than six years, during which time they were exposed 
to a double risk, being continually liable to become the prey of the 
Anthropophagi, and in no less danger of being seized by the soldiers 
of Government. At length they by hazard made some trials in the 
river Abaite, at a time when its waters were so low, in consequence 
of a long season of drought, that a part of its bed was left exposed. 
Here, while searching and washing for gold, they had the good for- 
tune to find a diamond nearly an ounce in weight. Elated by this 
providential discovery, which at first they could scarcely believe to be 
real, yet, hesitating between a dread of the rigorous laws relating to 
diamonds, and a hope of regaining their liberty, they consulted a 
clergyman, who advised them to trust to the mercy of the state, and 
accompanied them to Villa Rica, where he procured thern access to 
the governor. They threw themselves at his feet, and delivered to 
him the invaluable gem on which their hopes rested, relating all the 
circumstances connected with it. The governor, astonished at its 
magnitude, could not trust the evidence of his senses, but called the 
officers of the establishment to decide whether it was a diamond, 
who set the matter beyond all doubt. Being thus, by the most 
strange and unforeseen accident, put in possession of the largest 
diamond ever found in America, he thought proper to suspend the 
sentence of the men as a reward for their having delivered it to him. 
The gem was sent to Rio de Janeiro, from whence a frigate was dis- 
patched with it to Lisbon, whither the clergyman was also sent to 
make the proper representations respecting it. The sovereign con- 
firmed the pardon of the delinquents, and bestowed some prefer- 
ment on the holy father. 

i i 2 



( 244 ) 



The governor ordered a guard on the river, which was soon after- 
wards worked under the direction of the intendant of Cerro do Frio, 
who sent thither an administrator and two hundred negroes. It has 
since been worked at different periods with various success ; some- 
times large stones have been found, but of an indifferent quality. 
The work is now abandoned by Government, and gives occupation 
to numbers of adventurers. Its neighbourhood has many interest- 
ing places, hitherto but little explored. 

A few leagues from this river is a very strong vein of lead ore 
(lead glance) in a calcareous matrix. I have seen pieces of it of the 
weight of twenty pounds, and it is said to be so abundant that any 
quantity may be obtained. Some of the specimens presented to me 
were covered with carbonate of lead. It has the appearance of a 
potter's ore, and is said to be poor in silver. No one has undertaken 
to work it, as the difficulty and expence of conveying the metal to 
Rio de Janeiro would exceed the price at which it would sell in that 
market*. When the neighbourhood becomes more populous, and 
the value of this useful metal is better known, the mine will probably 
be a source of riches, for lead ore is certainly scarce in Brazil, nor 
did I hear of any other place which produces it. 

The river St. Francisco is very considerable, and is said to contain 
great quantities of fish-)-, which is a sufficient proof that there are 
but few gold-washings in it. On the banks, and in the country to 
the eastward, great numbers of cattle are bred, which are sold in all 
the populous towns of the captaincy, and large herds are sent to Rio 
de Janeiro, a distance of above six hundred miles. A considerable 
commerce is carried on with them, and some families who raise large 
quantities are reported to have acquired great fortunes by it. The 



* It may become useful at Villa Rica : but the quantity required there at present is so 
trivial as scarcely to merit attention. 

f If salt were cheaper they might be cured, and would become an article of commerce, 
particularly during Lent. 



( 245 ) 



want of salt is a very general complaint ; the cattle require it, nor 
will they breed well without it. 

This district is too far distant from a sea-port to enjoy any extent 
of commerce in the general articles of its produce. Gold and pre- 
cious stones are easily transported, but lead, and other commodities 
of greater bulk and inferior value, would scarcely pay the expence 
of carriage. Hence no cotton, coffee, or sugar is grown for export- 
ation, and the quantity consumed in the district is very limited, 
owing to the small number of the inhabitants, and the miserable in- 
digence in which they generally live, their common diet being Indian 
corn-flour, boiled beans, and a little pork. The trade to Rio de 
Janeiro is much similar to that of Minas Novas, and consists 
chiefly in iron, cotton, arms, hard-ware, and a few trivial luxuries. 
Persons of all ranks are eager to purchase negroes, also a few 
woollens. The only articles sent to Villa Rica are gold-dust and 
hides. 

In this district, and in other parts of these immense territories, 
particularly to the eastward, are large tracts of land volute, or not 
occupied by any person under a grant from government. These 
lands to a considerable extent may be taken by making proper ap- 
plication, and afterwards held as freehold. Other excellent situations 
are in the possession of idle people, who are equally incapable and 
unwilling to reap advantage from them. These may be bought very 
cheap, and are certainly preferable to the unoccupied tracts, as they 
have generally some few conveniences attached to them, and may, 
therefore, more easily be brought into a proper state of cultivation. 
Here is every inducement for a spirited and experienced agriculturist 
to settle : a rich and fertile district, in which there remains much to 
be discovered in every department, where all the necessaries, and 
many of the luxuries, of life are produced almost spontaneously ; and 
where the exertions of industry would be rewarded in a tenfold 
degree by the bounteous hand of nature, and stimulated by the cer- 



( 246 ) 



tain hope of arousing a degenerate race of men to follow the example. 
Nor could there be any objection on the score of differences in 
opinion ; for I am persuaded that no one would here be molested 
for his religious tenets, while he prudently avoided giving offence, 
and paid the same regard to the conscience of his neighbour which 
he expected for his own. 



( 247 ) 



CHAP. XV. 

Observations on Tejuco and Cerro do Frio. 

TN the foregoing pages I have endeavoured to present to the reader 
a narrative of whatever I observed worthy of note in the Diamond 
District, and have related the several particulars in the order in 
which they occurred to me, reserving the task of general description 
for that period of my residence there when I might be supposed best 
qualified to perform it. This mode of proceeding will expose me to 
the risk of a few repetitions, for which my apology must rest on the 
peculiar circumstances under which I visited Tejuco, — on the con- 
tinual journeys in which I was occupied from the moment of my ar- 
rival to the time when I was attacked by illness, and which left me 
no leisure for combining my actual observations with general views 
of the country. 

\ The district of Cerro do Frio consists of rugged mountains, that 
have a northerly and southerly direction, and are generally allowed 
to be the highest in Brazil. What is termed the Diamond ground, 
extends about sixteen leagues from north to south, and about eight 
from east to west. It was first explored by some enterprising miners 
from Villa do Principe, a few years after the establishment of that 
town. These men proceeding northerly found an open country, 
watered by many small rivulets, which they tried for gold by 'wash- 
ing : some of them engaged their attention for a short time, but not 
proving sufficiently rich, they continued their route, passing the places 
now called San Gonzales and Melho Verde, until they arrived at a 
few streams that flow from the base of the mountain on which Te- 
juco is built. These rivulets were then washed for gold, and were 

9 



( 248 ) 



considered as belonging to the district of Villa do Principe. No idea 
was first entertained that the rivulets contained diamonds, although 
it is said that some were collected and presented to the then governor 
of Villa do Principe as curious bright stones, and were used by him 
as counters at cards. Soon afterwards a few of them found their 
Avay to Lisbon, and were given as pretty pebbles to the Dutch 
minister to send to Holland, which was then the principal mart in 
Europe for precious stones. The lapidaries, to whom they were 
presented for examination, pronounced these pebbles to be very fine 
diamonds. Information was accordingly sent to the Dutch consul 
at Lisbon, who did not fail to profit by the occasion ; for he ma- 
naged the affair with Government so well, that he contracted for 
the precious stones at the same time that he communicated the in- 
telligence. Government afterwards endeavoured to monopolize the 
diamonds, and made a distinct district of Cerro do Frio, placing it 
under peculiar laws and regulations. 

The number of diamonds sent over during the first twenty years 
after the discovery is said to be almost incredible, and to exceed 
One thousand ounces in weight. This supply could not fail to 
diminish the general value of diamonds, as none had ever before 
been known to come from any other part of the globe, except India, 
whither the Brazilian diamonds were afterwards sent, and found a 
better market there than in Europe. 

By stratagems and intrigues Government was prevailed on to let 
these invaluable territories to a company, who were under stipula- 
tions to work with a limited number of negroes, or to pay a certain 
sum per day for every negro employed. This opened a door to 
every species of fraud ; double the stipulated number of negroes 
were admitted ; and this imposition was connived at by the agents 
of Government, who received pay in one hand and bribes in the 
other. Presents were made to men possessing influence at court, 
by the contractors, who soon became rich, and they continued (sub- 
ject to a few regulations) in possession of the diamond mines until 



( 249 ) 



about the year 1772, when, Government determining to take them 
into their own hands, these contracts were ended. 

This was the time for reforming abuses, and for placing this rich 
district under the best regulations, but it was neglected ; prejudice 
prevailed over prudence ; and the management was entrusted to 
men who did not understand the real interests of the concern, or, 
what is more probable, who were so shackled in their authority, 
that they could not pursue them. From this time affairs became 
worse, and the establishment was in debt to foreigners, who had 
advanced a considerable sum of money on the security of having all 
the diamonds which the mines produced. This debt still remains 
unpaid, and there are other incumbrances, which can be removed 
only by a total change of system. In its present state the esta- 
blishment appears to produce much greater wealth than it actually 
does. During a period of five years, from 180 J to 1806 inclusive, 
the expences were 204,0001. ; and the diamonds sent to the treasury 
at Rio de Janeiro weighed 115,675 carats. The value of gold found 
in the same period amounted to 17,3001. sterling, from which it ap- 
pears that the diamonds actually cost Government thirty-three shil- 
lings and nine-pence per carat. These years were esteemed singu- 
larly productive ; the mines do not in general yield to Government 
more than 20,000 carats annually*. 

The town is under the absolute government of the Intendant. 
The principal officers of the civil and military establishments are, 
an ouvidor or fiscal, a captain of cavalry, and a captain mor. In 
the Diamond establishment there is a great number of officers, of 
whom the following are the principal : 1st, the Intendant, who is a 
judge, and intendant-general of the capitania of Minas Geraes 
(this office is one of the best in the gift of the crown) ; 2d, the Trea- 
surer, whose situation is almost a sinecure: he receives 8,000 cru- 



* Exclusive of this amount, there is a vast } 'antity smuggled. 

K K 



( 250 ) 



sades per annum ; and 3d, the Administrator-general, who has a 
salary of 6,000. The book-keeper has 4,000, and three clerks, or 
key-keepers, have from 800 to 1,000 each. These officers are em- 
ployed in whatever relates to the treasury, or to the general concerns 
of the establishment ; they all reside in Tejuco, and are the most re- 
spectable of the inhabitants. The management of the different 
works is entrusted to eight or ten under-administrators, each having 
in his care two hundred negroes, called a troop, to which, besides a 
clergyman and a surgeon, are attached several overseers and subor- 
dinate officers, who have salaries of from 400 to 200 crusades. The 
privilege of employing a certain number of negroes in the works is 
common to all the officers, to an extent corresponding with their 
rank : the superior officers let to hire as many as they please, say 
forty, and sometimes upwards of fifty ; the inferior officers are 
permitted to let out two or three, in preference to other individuals ; 
a decidedly bad practice, as will be shewn hereafter. 

The Intendant holds a place of great trust : he is the superior 
magistrate, and his duty is to administer justice, and to see that 
the laws peculiar to the district are duly executed. He is of course 
president of the assembly, or juncta, and calls meetings whenever he 
thinks proper ; he disposes of the military force of the district, orders 
roads to be made or stopped, and stations guards on them to ex- 
amine travellers, and to detain suspicious persons. He has also the 
privilege of giving or refusing permission for persons to enter the dis- 
trict, or settle in it ; and every one, however high in rank or pro- 
perty, who passes thither is supposed to have the Intendant's express 
concurrence, which, as a matter of form, is sometimes dispensed with. 
He appoints officers, signs all papers, receives all reports that are 
made, and acts accordingly. To him solely the treasure is entrusted 
for the payment of the salaries of the officers, the negroes' wages, 
tradesmen's bills, and every incidental expence attending the esta- 
blishment. He issues paper-money, and withdraws it from circula- 
tion whenever he thinks proper ; for all which he is responsible to 



( 251 ) 



Government alone, and may be said to be almost absolute in his 
office. 

In addition to these important functions, the present Intendant 
has assumed the whole direction and regulation of the mining con- 
cern, which none of his predecessors ever practically interfered with, 
it. being the peculiar province of the administrator-general. For this 
undertaking he is equally qualified by the superiority of his talents, 
and by the extent of his acquirements : he studied mineralogy many 
years under the celebrated Werner, by whom he was considered as 
one of his most enlightened disciples ; afterwards he travelled through 
Hungary, and all the most interesting German states, and, lastly, 
made the tour of England and Scotland, where he resided two 
years. 

The Administrator-general, to whom belong the direction and 
management of the works, ought to be equally experienced in mining 
and mechanics, particularly in hydraulics : he should be a man of 
general information, combined with great practical knowledge rela- 
tive to the locality of the district, so as to be able to ascertain the 
real value of every situation, and to direct the operations accordingly. 
He should have a mind fertile in resources, and prepared to meet 
every disappointment or casualty that can possibly occur, that the 
time of the negroes may not be employed in vain ; he should also 
facilitate their labours by the introduction of machinery, and should 
be particularly attentive to their good treatment, since on them his 
success, and consequently his reputation, must in a great measure 
depend. 

On this latter point humanity and policy ought alike to direct the 
attention of the superiors of the establishment. It is natural to sup- 
pose that negroes, when treated with harshness, ill fed and ill clothed, 
will be indifferent to the interests of their employers, and, perhaps, 
determined not to find diamonds, whereas, when subjected to milder 
and kinder usage, which might be done without relaxing in vigilance, 
they would become anxious to please, and would search more dili- 

K K 2 



( 252 ) 



gently in order to obtain notice and reward. It must be obvious 
that negroes rarely conceal diamonds for themselves ; and yet cus- 
tom has rendered the feelings of their real owners in Tejuco so irri- 
table, on being suspected to encourage the practice, that if the word 
grimpero (smuggler) is mentioned in conversation, they shudder with 
horror and distort their features, calling on the Virgin to witness their 
abhorrence of a crime to which Government has attached the greatest 
disgraces and punishments. 

Pure, honest souls ! Being a stranger in the country, I conceived 
that these gentlemen really felt the sentiments which their words and 
gestures expressed ; and, as persons of all ranks seemed to fear con- 
versing on the subject, I thought at first that I should not see a single 
diamond in all Tejuco, except those in the treasury ; but a little ac- 
quaintance with the town soon convinced me that I was a novice ; 
for, on visiting a few friends to whom I had introductions, I found that 
diamonds were bartered for every thing, and were actually much 
more current than specie. Even pious indulgences were bought with 
them ; and surely no one could have suspected that the seller of His 
Holiness's bulls would condescend to taste the forbidden fruits of 
Tejuco*. 

As I had the honour to reside at the house of the Intendant, I was 
considered by the people of the town as a person connected with 
Government, and therefore as one who ought not to be informed of 
the secret traffic among them; hence, when in company with the 
officers of the establishment, whenever the word grimpero was men- 
tioned, I found it necessary to manifest the same feelings of disgust 
which they did ; and, on expressing my surprise that any one could 
so far degrade himself as to be guilty of the crime of smuggling dia- 



* The privilege of selling dispensations in this capitania is bought at Rio de Janeiro, or 
of the worthy Bishop of Mariana, who derives great advantage from it. The sale is regarded 
as a most excellent take, and yields a very considerable income to the present holder, who 
possesses the talent of pleasing those most who pay the highest price. 

9 



( 253 ) 



monds, it was tacitly agreed that no white man could stoop to such 
dishonour. The point was soon settled ; for I tbund it best not to 
oppose general opinions, nor to enter too minutely on delicate sub- 
jects ; and it was sometimes expedient for me to seem regardless of 
what I was most stedfastly looking at. 

In Tejuco there are about nine or ten principal shopkeepers, to 
whom the establishment itself, and the officers belonging to it, are 
frequently indebted ; indeed, these men receive the greater part of 
the money due to the various persons employed in the works, in ex- 
change chiefly for English commodities of one description or other. 
The establishment is paid once a year, and for this purpose a sum not 
less than 300,000 crusades is sent from Villa Rica, to which may be 
added 60,000 or 100,000 more, found in the gold mines of the dis- 
trict. The greater part of this money flowing into the hands of the 
shopkeepers, as above-stated, is immediately employed in a way in- 
jurious to the interests of Government; nor can worse policy be 
imagined than that of allowing so large an expenditure in a place 
which offers such temptations. 

Some years ago many gold-mines were washed in this district, but 
as information was given that diamonds were found in them, they were 
ordered to be abandoned. At present more equitable measures are 
adopted, and the proprietors are commencing to work some of them 
again, under an agreement to give up what diamonds they find*. 



* One Sunday morning during my stay, an owner of a washing came to the house of the 
Intendant, and brought him two miserable diamonds of bad colour, which did not weigh 
together above five grains ; and these, he said, were all which his ten negroes had found in 
six weeks. In the course of conversation, the Intendant observed that all the smugglers 
were either imprisoned or dispersed, when the man immediately assumed an appearance of 
great disgust at the mention of persons of so vile a description, and was liberal in his epithets 
of abuse on them. — If I durst have enquired how it happened that his negroes in six weeks 
could find only two bad- coloured diamonds, what emotions would this immaculate miner 
have manifested ! 



( 254 ) 



There is a general order to work all the gold-mines which were for- 
merly confiscated, and this measure will, it is hoped, increase the 
quantity of gold, and have a good effect in every respect. 

If Government are obliged to hire negroes wherever they can ob- 
tain them, (which appears to be the case,) it would be at least expe- 
dient to have a store to supply them, in order that the money paid 
in wages to them might return into the funds of the establishment. 

The hiring of negroes to the diamond works is the favourite occu- 
pation of all ranks in Tejuco ; rich and poor endeavour to engage in 
it to as great an extent as their property will allow. The pay of the 
slaves is trifling compared with the risk, their labour being heavy, 
their maintenance poor, and their treatment harsh; there must, there- 
fore, be some temptation not openly seen, yet as well known as light 
from darkness. Numbers of persons are thus induced to reside in 
Tejuco under various pretexts, but with no other real view than to 
get their negroes into the service, and to live idly on their wages, and 
on what they conceal or pick up. Thus all fatten upon the pasture, 
except those in the extreme of indigence, and others who, from neg- 
lect of economy, are always poor. There are a numerous class, from 
the age of seven years to upwards of twenty, who are without any 
visible means of earning their subsistence, and would remain idle 
even if manufactories were established ; for though they are brought 
up from their infancy with negro-children, yet in the working de- 
partment they would abandon their former play-fellows. The people, 
in general are rendered more averse from habits of regular industry 
by the continual hopes which they indulge of becoming opulent by 
some fortunate discovery of mines ; these fallacious ideas, which 
they instil into the minds of their children, strongly prejudice them 
against labour, though they all exist miserably, and not unfrequently 
depend upon donations. Their education is extremely limited : they 
are in general total strangers to the sciences, and are very scantily 
informed on any useful subject. 



( 255 ) 



As the object of my journey into this district was to examine into 
the real state of affairs, and to give a true report of them on my re- 
turn, for which purpose I was furnished with many privileges never 
allowed to any person before, and was thus enabled to see all that I 
desired, humanity requires that I should make some observations on 
the fate of those unfortunate persons who have been tempted to 
smuggle diamonds, and have been caught in the act. I even men- 
tioned the subject to the minister on my return to Rio de Janeiro ; 
•but as his occupations were great, and the state of my health re- 
quired me to leave the country immediately, nothing more was said 
of it. 

The great demand for these precious articles, and the facility of 
secreting them, have caused them to be searched for and carried 
away in violation of the existing laws of the country. Of the 
numbers who have engaged in this illicit traffic, from an eager desire 
to become rich at once, many have eluded the vigilance of the guards, 
and have finished their career with credit and opulence ; others less 
fortunate have been detected, and have incurred the punishment an- 
nexed to the offence, namely, the surrender of their illegally acquired 
treasure, the confiscation of their whole property, and exile to Africa, 
or confinement, perhaps for life, in a loathsome prison. Mild as are 
the criminal laws of Brazil, the latter part of this sentence is an ex- 
ception at which human nature shudders. Surely, when a poor 
wretch who has been tempted to this offence has atoned for it by the 
loss of all he possessed, he has suffered sufficiently without being 
subjected to the forfeiture of personal liberty, and to all the woes in- 
cident to hopeless captivity. Far be it from me to countenance any 
infringement on the laws which have been established for the protec- 
tion of property, either public or private ; to respect the institutions 
of whatever nation I may live in, I hope I shall always be among the 
first, and to encourage others to disregard them, the very last ; for 
illicit trade of every description is a deceitful and dangerous pursuit, 
the sweets of which are ever attended with a counteracting portion 



( 256 ) 



of evils. The object of my reasoning is to shew that these degraded 
persons have been of service to the state, and may still be rendered 
useful to it. May it be permitted me to enquire who were the dis- 
coverers of perhaps all the diamond mines which have enriched the 
caskets of the royal family of Portugal beyond comparison with 
those of any other state, and which have not only augmented the 
revenues of the government, but have proved the source from which 
many respectable and enterprising individuals have derived their 
opulence ? Adventurers, who, at great risk and with indefatigable 
toil, have penetrated unknown forests, and explored deep ravines 
among the haunts of the savage Anthropophagi, in search of gold- 
mines, and in them have by chance found diamonds. When a place 
of this description has been once discovered by these men, it seldom 
remains long secret ; the agents of Government take possession of it, 
and either work it immediately, or guard it until a future occasion. 
The discoverer of course flies from the place ; and if he have picked 
up a few stones, or robbed the earth of some of its most brilliant 
rarities, he will seek the best and safest means of procuring value for 
them. If he be a man of sufficient property, he will hire a few mules, 
load them with cotton, bacon, and other commodities, and proceed 
to Rio de Janeiro in regular form. On his arrival there, he enters 
some good house in which he has confidence, and disposes of his 
concealed treasure. His mind is then relieved from apprehension, 
and he begins to make preparations for his return. His first care is 
to lay out his money to the best advantage : negroes are his chief 
object, and these pay a duty to the state on their leaving Angola, 
and another of ten milreis each on entering the mining country. If 
they be employed in mining, Government obtains a fifth of the gold 
found, and if in agriculture, a tenth of the produce is exacted. The 
next object of the adventurer is to lay in a stock of woollens, and 
other English manufactures, which pay a duty of fifteen per cent, on 
being landed, and are subject to another, according to their weight, 
on entering the territory of the mines. Thus it really appears that 



( 257 ) 



most of the contraband property is divided between the state and 
the smuggler : but this is not all ; the diamonds are sent out of the 
country, and real effects of value are received in return, leaving a 
balance much in favour of Brazil. 

This illicit trade has been carried on to a very considerable extent : 
there is strong presumptive authority for stating that, since the first 
discovery of the mines, diamonds to the amount of two millions ster- 
ling have thus found their way to Europe, exclusive of what the con- 
tractors accounted for. This has been owing to the ill management 
of the whole establishment, and to the total want of necessary regu- 
lations, which have prevailed so long, that it will not be easy to 
apply a remedy. Let us suppose for a moment the system to be 
changed ; the two thousand negroes employed in the establishment 
to be the property of the crown (whom two years' profit of the dia- 
mond mines would be adequate to purchase); these negroes to be 
supplied with every article for their support from a general store, 
and to be treated as mildly as possible : they would then form a 
society, and, knowing no other masters than their officers, would 
have only one common interest to serve. The contraband trade by 
this means, though perhaps not totally destroyed, would receive an 
irrecoverable blow, and would be reduced almost to nothing. Should 
such a change take place, the shopkeepers, and those persons who 
subsist by hiring negroes to the works, would find the source of their 
emoluments dried up, and, rather than remain at Tejuco, would mi- 
grate to situations more congenial to their interests : thus the district 
would be freed from that bane which has so long over-run it, and 
Government would reap the advantage of having the mines worked 
by their own negroes, whom it would be difficult for others to 
seduce. 

Another evil which such a change of system would be calculated 
to remove, is the following: — Every article of sustenance required for 
the establishment is purchased of farmers who reside a few leagues 
from Tejuco, or who have farms at a greater distance ; and this ab- 

L L 



( 258 ) 



surd practice is the cause of much unnecessary intercourse. There 
are thousands of acres of excellent land in the vicinity of the diamond 
works, having choice of situation, and fit for the growth of every 
species of produce. How well might a part of the force above-men- 
tioned be occasionally spared for a few days only, to be employed 
in the first operations of husbandry, which would be, to inclose a 
sufficient quantity of ground in various parts for the maintenance of 
the establishment. A certain number of negroes would be allotted, 
in proportion to the land under cultivation, and on particular occa- 
sions, as in harvest, an auxiliary force would be always at hand. 
This would be farming with double advantage ; the plough would 
work instead of the hoe ; after-crops would be sown to be eaten off 
the ground, which would thus be enriched and kept in good condi- 
tion. Numbers of acres would be planted with artificial grass, sub- 
ject to irrigation where that was practicable, and thus, contrary to 
the general practice, the cattle would be provided with subsistence 
in the dry season. Indian corn, wheat, mandioca, feijones, potatoes, 
&c. would be cultivated, and, under proper management, would 
yield crops equal to the most sanguine expectation. Store-houses, 
with requisite conveniences, would soon be erected, in which the 
grain might be kept without spoiling. Thus would the first princi- 
ples of husbandry be introduced into the district, and prove a source 
of more lasting benefit to the state than mines either of gold or dia- 
monds, for when the latter were exhausted there would remain an 
active and industrious population. It seems, indeed, to have been 
the purpose of nature, in distributing these precious substances in 
these remote and almost unknown parts, to allure civilized men to 
settle upon them. 

From the circumstances which have been already explained, it 
will appear that, under the present system, the Government pay for 
all the diamonds that are found here, and probably receive little more 
than one-half ; therefore it is evident that those conveyed through 
other channels can be sold to the public at a lower price than that 



( 259 ) 



at which the former are obtained. But the embarrassed state of the 
establishment is such, that the managers cannot lessen their ex- 
pences, being obliged to take credit for every article, and to hire 
almost any negroes that are offered. These evils have taken too 
deep root to be eradicated, even by the abilities of the present In- 
tendant : had such a man been placed here forty years ago, em- 
powered to act without controul, and to govern the district as private 
property, on the principles above stated, he might have rendered it 
rich and independent. 

As all the diamonds found in these works belong to the crown, the 
royal family have been accustomed to select from the quantity annually 
remitted whatever stones they considered worthy their notice, which 
were generally those exceeding seventeen carats. They were for- 
merly sent to Holland to be cut, the Dutch being the contractors of 
the diamonds, from the first discovery of the mines ; but since the 
emigration of the court to Rio de Janeiro, that trade has been trans- 
ferred to England, where these precious stones annually arrive, and 
are sold by private contract. 

The collection of diamonds now in the possession of the Prince 
Regent is unequalled in number, size, and quality, by that of any 
potentate in the world ; and I am credibly informed that it exceeds 
in value three millions sterling. 

This district has a direct communication with Bahia, and a few 
troops of mules are continually employed in going from one place 
to the other. The journey is much longer than to Rio de Janeiro, 
but the country is less mountainous ; there are fewer ranchos or 
hovels on the road, and in two parts it is requisite to carry fresh 
Avater for two days' consumption. The commodities sent from Te- 
juco and Minas Novas are very trivial, consisting of topazes, ame- 
thysts, and other stones ; in return for which are brought English 
fine manufactured goods, particularly hats, printed cottons, stock- 
ings, and saddles, which have been much cheaper in Bahia than in 

l l 2 



( 260 ) 

England. Coarser articles are generally sent from Rio de Janeiro, 
the distance being, as before observed, much shorter. 

Of navigable rivers we can say but little. The many small streams 
that rise in various parts join, and form the Jigitonhonda, which, as 
before observed, may be navigated to sea, without any impediment, 
in at most ten days time. How much would the country be benefited 
if a port were established at the entrance of this river, and vessels 
were allowed to load and unload ; canoes would find their way from 
thence into the interior in the short space of twenty days, loaded 
with every article necessary for the consumption of the district. 
How superior would this mode of conveyance be to that of making 
roads through impervious woods, and over almost impassable moun- 
tains. How many thousands of crusades annually expended on 
mules would be thus saved to the public, and what numbers of men 
would thus be trained for the service of the marine, instead of those 
now employed as muleteers. With the advantage of such a com- 
munication, Minas Novas and Cerro do Frio would soon more than 
double their population, and it might be anticipated that the banks 
of these fine rivers, now lying deserted and useless, would bloom with 
every variety of vegetation which this genial climate is capable of 
producing. 

Under the present system Tejuco ought to maintain itself, and 
have the least possible intercourse with other places. Its commerce 
ought to be confined wholly to gold and precious stones ; but should 
Government determine to make diamonds a free trade, then a con- 
trary policy would be requisite. On this subject I shall, in the se- 
quel, have some observations to make. 

The quadrupeds of Cerro do Frio are common to other parts of 
Brazil. Mules are the principal beasts of burthen, and are much 
dearer than in the districts more to the southward. Horses are not 
so numerous, but cheaper, being in very little request, and used only 
on journeys of pleasure. Horned cattle are bred at a considerable dis- 
tance, and brought for the consumption of the place. Sheep are 

9 



( 261 ) 



almost unknown ; hogs and goats are more plentiful ; of dogs there 
are but few, and the race is very indifferent. Ounces are very sel- 
dom seen ; there are not many deer ; the danta, or tapir, is not un- 
common. 

Of birds there are a few varieties, but in no great numbers : par- 
tridges are rather common ; we shot several in our way to the differ- 
ent mines, which proved good eating. Domestic fowls are in tole- 
rable plenty, but by no means cheap, being eighteen-pence to two 
shillings each. 

Of serpents, I saw only one, and it was harmless : but I was in- 
formed that the rattle-snake and the jararaca, both equally venom- 
ous, are common in this district. Lizards are very numerous, and 
the cayman, or alligator, is found in most of the rivers. 

Fish are extremely scarce in all the streams, owing to the quantity 
of matter with which their waters are impregnated from the numerous 
washings. 

This district is in general free, from that troublesome plague, the 
mosquito, as that insect is peculiar to low and swampy places, and 
does not bite with such disagreeable effect in elevated and airy situ- 
ations. Bees are but little attended to, and are scarcely known ; 
were the management of them better understood and practised by 
the inhabitants, they might be much increased, and wax might even 
be exported. 

In closing my observations on this district, I may be permitted to 
add some particulars relative to the capital. The families whom I had 
the honour to visit appeared to live in great sociability. They fre- 
quently form tea-parties. The dress of the ladies consists almost 
entirely of articles of English manufacture, cotton prints, straw hats, 
artificial flowers, jewelry, &c. Owing to the great distance of Tejuco 
from a sea-port, piano-fortes have not been introduced here, or they 
would probably be in great demand ; for the ladies in general have a 
taste for music, and touch the guitar with great spirit and elegance. 
Dancing is a favourite amusement, and all appear much pleased and 



( 262 ) 



animated with the English country-dance. The ladies seldom go 
abroad, except to mass, and then they are usually carried in a chair 
hung with curtains and a canopy, and suspended from a pole, borne 
by two men. The sedentary habits of the females I have often 
thought injurious to their health ; but, since English saddles have 
been introduced, they begin to take airings on horseback. 

Warm baths are very generally used, being considered of great 
efficacy in removing recent colds, to which all persons here are 
liable, on account of the peculiar nature of the climate. They are 
invariably offered at night to travellers, as a means of relieving the 
pains occasioned by the fatigues of the day. 

A continuance of ill health obliged me to take leave of my friends 
in Tejuco, and to return to Rio de Janeiro with all possible expedi- 
tion. It will not be expected that I should relate all the particulars 
of my journey thither, as I retraced my former route with a few 
occasional deviations ; I shall therefore confine myself to whatever 
I saw worthy of interest which I did not observe on my way to 
Tejuco. 

Mr. De Camara did me the honour to accompany me as far as 
San Gonzales, and shewed me a work a short distance from the esta- 
blishment, near the margin of a river of the same name. As I staid 
here one entire day with this gentleman, I had leisure to examine this 
singular situation, where I, for the first time, found mountains of 
sienite, incredibly hard, composed of hornblende and feldspar. 
About forty years ago this excavation, which was of considerable 
depth, was suddenly filled up by the bursting-in of the side, for want 
of proper support to resist the pressure of the incumbent stratum, 
which falling in immense masses, totally destroyed the works ; and 
they remained in this state until about two years ago. As the wings 
of vague report are in general much longer than those of truth, this 
place had the reputation of being extremely rich in diamonds, and 
the apparent impossibility of clearing it, added greatly to the credit 
which was given to it. Old inhabitants came forward to say that 



( 263 ) 



they had been employed in the works when the accident happened, 
arid that the diamonds found in them excelled in number, size, and 
fineness those produced at any other place. These reports soon 
reached the ears of the Intendant, who, within a year after entering 
upon his office at Tejuco, formed a plan of clearing and excavating 
the works. Such a stupendous undertaking was calculated only for 
a man of his superior talents and enterprise. He stationed there 
four hundred negroes under the direction of the best officers on the 
establishment ; inclined planes were formed, and pulleys calculated 
to lift immense weights were erected. As some of the masses of 
sienite were too large to be raised whole, and the substance was so 
hard that steel would not stand to bore it, they were obliged to con- 
trive means for breaking them. Recourse was had to large fires, with 
which the rocks were heated, and cold water was thrown upon them 
from tubs suspended by long pieces of timber formed somewhat like 
cranes. After six months of very heavy and incessant labour, the 
place was cleared. Let us for a moment reflect on the sanguine 
expectations which had been formed respecting the size of the dia- 
monds, their number and brilliancy, the honours that would be con- 
ferred on the officers, &c. ; and we may judge what must have been 
the general disappointment, when, after the bottom had been scraped, 
not a diamond was found ! Thus ended this serious trial, made at 
great expence, labour, and risk ; like many other speculations, built 
on the delusive stories propagated by old miners respecting places 
formerly worked, by which new adventurers are tempted, and fre- 
quently ruined. 

I continued my former route, visiting the same friends who had 
received me on my journey to Tejuco, until I arrived at Cocaes. 
In the vicinity of this place are found fine amethysts and 
crystals, through which titanium is interspersed. Proceeding from 
hence, I took a more easterly route to the village of Bromada, 
distant about five leagues. A great part of the road was covered 
with rich iron ore. I passed through the village of St. John, and 



( 264 ) 



entered a fine valley, through which ran a little rivulet, called 
St. Antonio; — a more delightful place cannot be imagined: the 
grounds, which lay in gentle elevations, were capable of every kind 
of cultivation, and appeared calculated amply to repay the farmer 
for any labour he might bestow upon them. In addition to these 
advantages, and that of a fine climate, this vicinity yet contains 
some places extremely rich in gold. At the end of this valley we 
crossed the rivulet over a good stone bridge, and passed through a 
pretty hamlet called Barra ; proceeding a league farther, we arrived 
at the house of Captain Jose Alvarez, who received me with great 
kindness. This being Sunday, many of the neighbours were on a 
visit to his house ; a sumptuous dinner had been provided, and the 
evening passed in very interesting conversation relative to the mode 
of mining in that neighbourhood. Next day I went to visit the 
gold-works belonging to this gentleman, the principal of which was 
situated near the summit of a mountain of argillaceous schistus, 
one part of which seemed to have slipped from the other, leaving a 
cleft of twenty feet perpendicular. The face of this cleft appeared 
of different colours, some much more ferruginous than others ; the 
parts esteemed most rich in gold had the appearance of irregular 
cavities, now filled by a substance not unlike ferruginous stalactite 
in decomposition. This mountain has produced a great quantity of 
gold, and continues yet rich : it may be truly called auriferous ; for 
I directed negroes to bring me specimens of earth from every part of 
the cleft, from the roots of the grass to the bottom, all of which I 
found to contain gold. At this place stamps are used to reduce the 
indurated substances, but they are so ill-constructed as to produce 
but little effect. After a most pressing invitation to stay, and ad- 
vantageous offers of land to a considerable extent, which I found it 
expedient to decline, I took leave of the owner of this establish- 
ment, and passed a very large house belonging to Captain-mor Penha, 
a very opulent miner, who has a large establishment of negroes, 
and extensive lands. I continued my route five leagues through 



( 265 ) 



an auriferous country, passed the village of St. Barbara, and ar- 
rived at Catos Altos. From hence I proceeded to Villa Rica, with- 
out observing any thing worth notice. 

I was here received with the same attention and respect which 
I had experienced on my first visit. Finding it necessary to re- 
main here a few days to recruit my health, I examined a variety 
of substances that had been collected for me during my absence, 
but was not fortunate enough to meet with any thing very inte- 
resting. The theatre being open, I passed two evenings there, 
and Avas much gratified to find that the rational amusement of 
the drama had superseded savage bull-fights. The theatre and de- 
corations were neat, and the performances tolerable ; were they bet- 
ter encouraged, the public would receive greater gratification. They 
have ever been under the control of the governor, and are generally 
so fettered as to be obliged to perform such pieces only as his caprice 
may dictate. 

Leaving Villa Rica, I continued my journey to the capital, where 
I arrived about the middle of February 1810, in a most exhausted 
state, from the combined effects of fatigue and an indisposition 
which continual exertion and want of rest had increased in a con- 
siderable degree. I informed His Excellency the Conde de Lin- 
hares of my arrival, and, in a few days afterwards, had the ho- 
nour of presenting to him a report, stating the particulars of my 
journey. I was afterwards introduced to the Prince, who did me 
the honour to express his approbation of my account of the coun- 
try through which I had travelled, and requested me to publish 
it. He was graciously pleased to make both my attendants of- 
ficers, in reward for their good conduct; and when 1 expressed 
my thanks for this mark of his attention, he replied, that it was 
too trivial to notice, and desired me to name in what manner he 
could testify the sense he entertained of my services. At this 
moment my health was extremely precarious, that I could not 

M M 



( 266 ) 

think of remaining in Rio de Janeiro, where I found myself daily 
getting worse; otherwise I have not the smallest doubt that the 
generosity of the Prince would have amply repaid me for the 
fatigues I had encountered. 



( 267 ) 



CHAP. XVI. 

General View of Minas Geraes. 

THE capitania of Minas Geraes extends from 600 to 700 miles 
from north to south, and about the same distance from east to 
west. It is bounded on the north by the capitania of Bahia ; on the 
west by that of Goyaz ; on the south by the river Paraibuna, which 
divides it from the capitania of Rio de Janeiro. It is separated from 
the district of Espiritu Santo and the coast by an immense chain of 
mountains, which country, being inhabited by the Anthropophagi, is 
of course very little known. 

This capitania is estimated to contain three hundred and sixty 
thousand inhabitants, of whom two hundred thousand are negroes, or 
their immediate offspring. The population of Indians is not included 
in this estimate, nor can it be ascertained ; they are considered 
as by no means numerous, as they never make any opposition against 
an armed force, however small. In the course of my journey I did 
not see one, except the child at the village of Concepcao, nor did I 
ever hear of any of them becoming civilized, or living in any of the 
villages with the settled inhabitants*. 

The regular military establishment of the capitania is very respect- 
able, and consists of 1400 cavalry, which number is prescribed by 



* From all accounts relative to the Indians, either by the officers employed against them, 
and better acquainted with their habits than other men, or from any of the settlers who live 
near the coast, it does not appear that they have the smallest knowledge of gold or of pre- 
cious stones j hence they can in no degree have contributed to the discovery of those trea- 
sures in the district. 

M M 2 



( 268 ) 



law, and cannot be augmented. Their principal station is at Villa 
Rica, where the general resides, who, jointly with the governor, issues 
all orders respecting them. They form a disposeable force for the 
general service of the capitania ; they are appointed to guard certain 
places known to contain valuable products ; also to receive tolls, col- 
lect tythes, patrole the roads, and search suspicious persons, for 
which purposes parties of them are stationed at the various guard- 
houses and registers. They go in quest of felons, guard the prisons, 
and likewise execute orders to impress men levied for service in Rio 
de Janeiro. They are employed exclusively in the mining country, 
which they never quit, except when they escort diamonds and trea- 
sure to the capital, or are dispatched on any particular service. The 
regiment is a very fine one, and enjoys so high a reputation, that 
numbers are continually offering to enlist in it. While I was at Villa 
Rica nearly two hundred volunteers were serving, without any re- 
muneration whatever, waiting to be placed on the establishment 
according to their seniority, as vacancies should occur. This affords 
the general an opportunity of choosing the most soldier-like men, 
and those of best character, in which respects it is asserted, and I 
believe with great truth, that the corps is unrivalled. The officers 
enter very young, and serve as cadets for a certain period, during 
which they perform the duty and receive the pay of privates, from 
whom they are distinguished by a star on the right shoulder, and 
generally exercise together. They are promoted according to se- 
niority. 

Besides this force, there is a militia, in which all the male inha- 
bitants of the capitania are enrolled, and are liable to be called out 
when occasions require. It is a part of the present policy of the 
Prince's ministers to stimulate the Creolians to active occupations, 
by obliging them either to till their grounds, or to enter the ranks 
and become soldiers. 

The known produce of this vast extent of territory comes next 
under consideration. On this subject I shall not follow a variety of 



I 269 ) 



vague accounts, which have been compiled with little regard to 
truth, but shall present to the reader the result of my own observ- 
ations. 

The great quantities of gold, precious stones, iron, &c. produced 
in this country have been largely treated upon. Galena, or sulphu- 
retoflead, is found only near Abaite. Antimony abounds in the 
vicinity of Sahara ; native bismuth is found near Villa Rica ; arseni- 
cal and martial pyrites are very common ; titanium is found in oc- 
taedral crystals, also in beautiful prisms and tender spiculse, finely 
grouped in rock crystal. Platina may be obtained in tolerable 
quantities at Largos, but the place which produces it has been aban- 
doned from want of a market. Chromate of lead, I was informed, 
is found in the vicinity of Cocaes : I raw several pieces in the pos- 
session of Dr. Gomedez of that place. At Tejuco, also, I was shewn 
some, and was presented with two pieces, which are uncommonly 
fine, more brilliant in colour than that from Siberia, and distinctly 
crystallized on a matrix of granular sand-stone, accompanied with 
the green oxide of chrome. Copper can scarcely be said to exist in 
this country ; the only place at present known to produce it, is a 
mountain twenty leagues from Tejuco, where small particles appear 
in a rock of quartz and hornblende : the matrix is so hard, and the 
quantity of copper so trivial, as to afford no encouragement to work 
it. The place has been examined by the Intendant, and is known 
to most persons in Tejuco*. No mines of silver have been discovered 
in the capitania, but the gold is generally found to contain that pre- 
cious metal, sometimes in great proportion. No tin, cobalt, or any 
other metal, except those above mentioned, has been hitherto met 
with. 



* At a place called Caldrones, near to Oro Branco, I received two bits of this metal, but 
they were so small and disfigured, as to leave strong doubts respecting their being natural ; 
the more so, by reason of the many impositions that were attempted to be practised upon me 
by false specimens of copper ores, silver, &c. 



( no ) 



Of salts, impure nitrate of potass is formed in great abundance,, 
generally, if not always, in calcareous situations, in a tract of coun- 
try which commences from ten to fourteen degrees west of Tejuco, 
particularly at Monte Rodrigo, which is situated between the two 
celebrated rivers called Rio dos Velhos and Parauna. This moun- 
tain is very large and well-wooded ; the stratum is calcareous, and 
contains many caves furred, as it were, with nitrate of potass. Since 
Government has made nitre an object of commerce, and encouraged 
its production, many families have settled at this place, and have 
collected large quantities of this saliferous substance, which, after 
several operations, is sent to Rio de Janeiro, where it is refined for 
the great powder-manufactory recently established near that city. 

In various places are found the finest clays in great plenty, fit for 
porcelain and earthenware of every description, which are entirely 
neglected. In other parts I saw cyanite, actinolite, tremolite, pot- 
stone, and chlorite. Conglomerate masses of recent formation, en- 
veloping diamonds and grains of gold, are sometimes, though rarely, 
met with ; also a siliceous substance of a fine dark-blue colour, pro- 
bably totally unknown. 

On the vegetable products of this capitania I have but few ob- 
servations to make, in addition to those already given in the course 
of my narrative. Many parts are well calculated for the growth of 
hemp and flax, and water for steeping them is easily attained in 
most situations ; so that the only impediment to the introduction of 
these useful plants appears to be the labour required to clean them. 

In the immense woods the finest trees are frequently destroyed by 
the creeping plants, which cannot grow without adhering to some 
support. When they attach themselves to a tree, they shoot up very 
rapidly, encircling it with numerous fibres, and in a few years become 
so strong as entirely to stop the growth of the tree, and at length 
destroy it. When in a young state, they are so flexible as to be 
used for ordinary purposes instead of cords. I have seen negroes 
make their bridles of them, and ride with them for a day together. 

9 



( 271 ) 



As these forests remain unexplored, many of the trees are un- 
known, and consequently the qualities of their barks. However, 
there are some used by the inhabitants in dyeing yellow ; and I was 
informed some yielded a black colour that could not be washed out. 
There is a variety which serves for curing skins, or tanning, some of 
which give the hide a red colour, others leave it almost white : but 
this art is so little known, and the people are so averse to employ- 
ments of this sort, that it has hitherto made little progress. 

Gum tragacanth is in great plenty, and of a very good quality. 
There are immense quantities of aromatic shrubs ; and I found in 
many places upon the bark of trees, and more particularly upon old 
wood, a lichen, which yielded to water a most beautiful crimson 
colour*. Jointed canes grow spontaneously, frequently above thirty 
feet long, and in many places form arcades over the road : these 
plants always indicate the soil to be very fertile. 

Ferns grow so large, as almost to lose their characteristic : I have 
frequently seen them twelve feet high. These and other succulent 
plants, when reduced to ashes, serve to make soap, of which almost 



* A part of the lichen which I brought home with me I presented to a gentleman who 
was fond of chemical experiments : he obtained from the small quantity of three grains as 
much colouring matter as imparted to an ounce of fluid a deep purple, sufficiently strong for 
every purpose of dyeing. 

The following are the results of some experiments which he did me the favour to make : 

White sewing-silk, put into an alcoholic solution only once, received a fine strong purple. 

Part of a skein of the same material was put into a solution of potash, which produced a 
purple deeper in hue than the former. 

Cotton thread and worsted yarn, immersed only once in the same solution, produced very 
nearly the same colours. 

The part of a skein of silk dyed in the alcoholic solution was immersed in a solution of 
muriate of tin, which produced a beautiful lilac, approaching to dove-coloured blue. The 
same substance dyed in a solution of potash, and immersed in a solution of muriate of tin, 
became a few shades darker, and rather more of a pink hue. These are not unfavourable 
results from a quantity so minute ; and I feel confident that this substance may be rendered 
a very valuable article of trade. 



( %m ) 



every negra knows the process, and mostfamilies make for their own use. 
It is very sharp, and washes white articles uncommonly well*. In 
this fine country, where almost every gradation of climate may be 
found, European fruits, such as olives, almonds, chesnuts, mulber- 
ries, &c. would thrive, if properly attended to. 

The mulberry is cultivated at one place, where I saw a few silk- 
worms. The climate is favourable to them, but the population is 
not sufficient to carry the breeding of them to any extent, as they 
require great attendance and care. 

Cochineal may be said to be almost unknown in the capitania ; the 
palma Christi grows spontaneously, and from its seeds great quantities 
of castor oil may be extracted. For bananas and other tropical fruits 
the climate is not sufficiently hot, and is too changeable. Beans, 
peas, and pulse in general, are very fine ; pumpkins also, and cab- 
bages grow to a great size. It is a fine country for flowers ; the rose 
is extremely fragrant, and is in bloom all the year. Varieties of the 
passion-flower are found in all parts ; pinks and carnations, with 
numberless other flowers, grow in great profusion. 

This capitania contains four comarcos, or districts, St. Joao del 
Rey, Sabara, Villa Rica, and Cerro do Frio, all of which produced 
much more gold a few years after their discovery than at present, 
though in the year 1809 Villa Rica alone received for gold permuted 
a hundred and six arrobas of thirty-two pounds each. The mines in 
the other three comarcos cannot be rated to permute less than from 
fifteen to twenty arrobas, therefore the capitania may be estimated 
to 3'ield to Government, as the annual fifth, a quantity not less than 
one hundred and fifty arrobas. 

St. Joao del Rey, the capital of the district so called, is a con- 
siderable town, and contains at least five thousand inhabitants. 



* In many parts of the coast, the plant which produces the barilla would probably flourish 
abundantly, if introduced, and would form an excellent article of commerce, not only for ex- 
portation, but for home consumption. 



( 273 ) 



It is situated near the Rio das Mortes, which runs northerly, and 
empties itself into the Rio das Velhas. The country around it 
is very fertile, and produces excellent fruits, both exotic and indige- 
nous ; also Indian corn, and beans in great quanties ; a little wheat, 
&c. This comarco being more cultivated than any other part, is 
called the granary of the district ; cheese is made here in tolerable 
quantity, and bacon very indifferently cured, both which are sent to 
Rio de Janeiro, and form a considerable trade. Great numbers of 
fowls are also sent thither, and a little rum, sugar, and coffee. Pro- 
visions of all kinds are much cheaper than at Villa Rica ; pork and 
beef are about a penny per pound, poultry in proportion, and vege- 
tables equally cheap. 

About two leagues distant from the town is the rivulet of San Jose*, 
formerly abounding in gold-washings, some of which continue good, 
particularly those in the vicinity of a pretty village, called Campan- 
ha. In the neighbourhood is a mountain that produces a great 
quantity of iron pyrites, which many people believe to be gold, and 
say that no method is yet known for extracting it. In this district 
are a great number of pines of a very singular variety, from the bark 
of which exudes much resinous gum. The wood is of a fine brown- 
red colour, full of knots, and inconceivably hard. 

Some cotton, although not very considerable in quantity, is grown 
in this district ; it is spun by hand, and woven into coarse clothing, 
generally for the use of the negroes. Finer cloth is sometimes woven 
for table-linen. The making of lace is a favourite occupation with 
the ladies of St. Joao del Rey, who are reputed to be more attentive 
to domestic concerns than those of other towns, many of them being 
descendants of the Paulistas, so celebrated for industry and economy. 

The district of Sahara was discovered and settled by the Paulistas, 
who took possession of it as early as the year 1690, or, according to 
some accounts, twenty years earlier. They founded the town which 
is now the capital of the district, and worked several gold-mines in 



* There are several rivulets in various parts that bear this name. 
N N 



( 274 ) 



its neighbourhood, the produce of which they sent to their native 
place, as it was their custom to do with all the gold found in the 
various parts which they explored ; on this account the city of 
St. Paul's acquired a much higher reputation for riches than it me- 
rited, it being generally believed that all the gold sent from thence 
was procured in that vicinity. Some years after the establishment of 
Sahara, the Court of Lisbon sent out a nobleman as governor to re- 
duce the settlers, and to oblige them to pay a tribute in conformity 
to the laws of the colony. The settlers took up arms, and several 
encounters took place, in one of which the nobleman was killed : 
but, after some time, the viceroy sent great reinforcements into the 
interior, and quelled the insurgents, who submitted to pay a fifth of 
the gold produced. A person of the name of Artis, who Avas a man 
of great intrepidity and perseverance, and had made considerable 
discoveries in the neighbourhood, was afterwards appointed governor, 
and this proved the means of reconciling all parties. 

While the Paulistas remained within their own territory, they were 
not, in any instance of which there is record, inimical to Government: 
but after they had formed a large settlement, and were become 
populous, they were not contented with living in as fine a cli- 
mate and as fertile a soil as imagination can conceive, but began to 
migrate in search of gold, traversing unknown countries, and encoun- 
tering every species of fatigue. When they had explored and occu- 
pied rich districts, at the expence of many lives and indescribable 
hardships, it is not a matter of surprise that they should be desirous 
to maintain their right to them by every means in their power. 
These enterprising men were the only active adventurers in the co- 
lony ; they knew their own superiority to the rest of the inhabitants, 
and a sense of it inclined them to oppose Government, who failed 
not to bestow upon them epithets which they little deserved. It is 
well known, however, that* in the colonial war of 1770, the troops of 
the Portugueze government would have made but a wretched figure 
without the Paulistas in the Paraguay, and the very extensive terri- 



( 275 ) 



tories in Matto Grosso, and to the north-west, where they penetrated 
and formed settlements, almost in Peru. They acted as cavalry 
only, and in a manner peculiar to themselves, which was so full of 
stratagem and surprize, that the Spaniards were generally driven, 
panic-struck, from their possessions. Their exploits are recited with 
enthusiasm by their descendants, who, ever remembering the preju- 
dices which the Spaniards entertain against their nation, ardently de- 
sire an opportunity of emulating their ancestors. In the war above- 
mentioned, thePortugueze troops, under Captain Coimbra de Suara, 
took in an instant the important settlement of Rio Grande de St. Pe- 
dro, which yet remains in their possession ; and it is thought that 
the whole territory on the north side of the Plata would be a very 
easy conquest, which the Paulistas alone would gladly volunteer to 
accomplish. I cannot conclude this digression without observing, in 
contradiction to the opprobrium and calumny bestowed on these 
men, and the false charges of discontent and rebellion which have 
been brought against them, that the Prince has not more loyal sub- 
jects in any part of his dominions. 

Respecting the. working of the mines throughout this capitania, it 
has been already observed, that much loss of time and labour is oc- 
casioned by the want of machinery, and proper implements for the 
workmen. Not a cart or wheel-barrow is in use : every thing ne- 
cessary to be removed is carried on the heads of the poor negroes, 
in gamellas, who have in many instances to climb up steep ascents, 
where inclined planes might be employed to great advantage, and 
would be formed with very little trouble. The caisson is the only 
hydraulic machine known, and is very generally adopted : but it 
is constructed with great difficulty and expence, and can be used 
only where a strong current of water can be commanded. Pumps 
might, at very trivial expence, be constructed on the plan of the ma- 
chines used to pound their Indian corn. 

The tedious process of washing the cascalhao for gold in gamellas, 
would be much shortened by using the machine of which the follow- 
er N 2 



( 276 ) 



ing is a description : — Suppose a cylinder to be formed of bars of iron 
longitudinally placed, and nailed to circles of wood, open at each 
end, and suspended on two centres, one about sixteen inches higher 
than the other. At the highest end the cascalhao is to enter by being 
put into a hopper which communicates with it. The bars must be 
nailed almost close to each other at the upper end, gradually widen- 
ing to the lower end, where they should be about half an inch asun- 
der. The cylinder ought to be from ten to fifteen feet long, and a 
stream of water conducted to fall upon it length- wise : it should be 
inclosed, like a dressing-machine in a flour-mill, and be subjected to 
a very quick motion. The portion of cascalhao containing the most 
gold will by gravity fall through near the upper end : the other parts, 
according to their comparative fineness, gradually descending until 
nothing but the pebbles fall out at the lower end. The earth and 
ferruginous oxide, falling into partitions or troughs below the cylin- 
der, would be ready for being purified or separated from the gold by 
hand, which might be done with very little trouble. — Machines of 
this kind might be made on any scale, and, if generally known and 
adopted, would save the labour of the negroes in a ten-fold degree. 
The one constructing in Cerro do Frio will, when complete, do more 
work than a hundred negroes in the same space of time. A considerable 
improvement might yet be made in this useful apparatus ; for, if the 
gold, &c. washed from the machine were to fall upon troughs placed 
in an inclined position, having a channel across about a yard from 
the upper end*, all the gold would precipitate into it, and, if a negro 
were to be continually employed in agitating the water, the earthy 
matter would run off, leaving only the gold and the ferruginous par- 
ticles, which might be easily separated by mercury -f-. The utility of 
machinery of this kind is too obvious to need pointing out. 



* If necessary, another channel might be made at a convenient distance from the first, 
f It cannot be too much recommended to Government to introduce the process of amal- 
gamation generally throughout the mines. 




Published at the Jet directs, ifoi, lylongman k Cf r.iternnrter Ron- 



( 277 ) 



Mills composed of three heavy irregular stones, resembling our 
flint-mills, would reduce many of the ferruginous cementations and 
softer substances which contain gold. The matter thus reduced 
might be immediately washed by falling or being put into the in- 
clined planes before described, and would, no doubt> prove the 
means of obtaining considerable quantities of the precious metal, 
which would be otherwise lost. Stamps might be useful where gold 
is found in hard and brittle substances : but these might be more ef- 
fectually pulverized by a heavy stone rolling upon its edge, not un- 
like a tanner's bark-mill. 

In many instances, hand-sieves might be useful, and would save 
much time and labour in washing, but perhaps they would be too 
expensive. Even miners' tools are much wanted, the only ones in 
use being the iron bar and the hoe. The common miner's pick-axe 
would in many cases be serviceable, and bucking-irons would reduce 
the matrix much more effectually than beating it with stones, which 
is the only mode now practised. It is a most unfortunate circum- 
stance, and very detrimental to the interests of the miners, that what- 
ever is made of iron is so dear as to be beyond the means of the in- 
habitants to procure, nor have they any substitute for it. 

When the present state of the mining country is considered, and 
its rich resources are compared with the want of science, which 
prevents the inhabitants from improving them, how much is it to be 
wished that Government would establish and encourage economical 
societies on the plan of our Society of Arts, Manufactures, and Com- 
merce, in which inquiries might be made into all subjects relative to 
the useful arts. Repositories also might be established in all the prin- 
cipal towns of the capitania, where models of useful machinery 
and various implements might be kept for the inspection of the 
public. Scientific publications should be purchased, and every 
means employed to promote the cultivation of science among the 
inhabitants. At the meetings of the societies, every measure tend- 
ing to increase the commerce of the district should be discussed 

9 



( 278 ) 



with particular attention ; honorary gifts should be made to those 
who most promoted its welfare, and premiums should be offered 
for the encouragement of all attempts to ameliorate the condition 
of the negroes. Although these poor captives are in general much 
better treated in Brazil than in many other colonies, yet their wel- 
fare is a consideration which ought always to be uppermost in 
the minds of the philanthropic. Among other subjects that merit 
the encouragement of such a society, are the growth of hemp and 
flax ; the improvement of the cotton, which of late years has been 
much neglected ; of coffee, which may be almost said to be unat- 
tended to ; and of rum, which is so very indifferent, and which, 
with better management, might be made so much superior. A 
better mode of farming might be introduced, — the culture of grass 
for cattle better attended to, — new modes of washing for gold and dia- 
monds invented, that the negroes might work in an upright position. 

Were such societies formed under the patronage of the Prince 
Regent, great improvements might be expected in every depart- 
ment of rural economy ; the country would be better cultivated, its 
mines would be worked to greater advantage, and many new pro- 
ductions, both mineral and vegetable, would in all probability soon 
be discovered. Through the influence of these philosophic meetings, 
information would be generally communicated, a spirit of enquiry 
would be awakened among the people ; they would learn to appre- 
ciate the blessings with which nature has enriched their country ; 
they would introduce the modern improvements of Europe ; as they 
became enlightened, they would become industrious, and would 
much surpass their neighbours, who would look up to them for in- 
struction and example. 

What objection can be made to a measure which promises to be- 
nefit alike the subjects and the state ? Even the most narrow- 
minded policy cannot find a pretext for keeping a whole people in 
ignorance ; for to be informed is to be useful, and every portiou of 
.-knowledge imparted to them redounds to the interest of the govern- 



( 279 ) 



ment. There can be no doubt that the present enlightened ministers 
of the court of Rio de Janeiro will endeavour to promote the sciences 
among a people so capable of attaining a proficiency in them, and 
of converting their acquirements to useful purposes. From the in- 
troduction of such a measure, might be dated a total change in the 
moral character and general habits of the Brazilians ; instruction 
would be imparted to all classes, — emulation would be enkindled 
among them, — and useful knowledge, descending from parent to 
child, would soon be universally diffused. This would be the true 
foundation of the prosperity of the country ; for no territory perhaps 
in the world is so rich in natural products, and at the same time so 
neglected for want of an enlightened and industrious population. 



( 280 > 



CHAP. XVII. 

Brief Notices on the Capitanias of Bahia, Pernambuco t Sear a, Mar an- 
ham, Para, and Goyaz. 

HPHE capitania of Bahia, to the northward of Minas Geraes, 
comes next under consideration, respecting which, as I did not 
visit it, I have only to present some observations from the best in- 
formation I could procure. It extends a considerable distance along 
the coast, being bounded on the north by the great river St. Fran- 
cisco, which runs into the sea in lat. 11° south, and separated from 
the district of Ilheos (formerly a capitania) by the river Das Contas 
in lat. 14° south. It receives its name from the capacious bay on 
which its capital is built, and which affords excellent anchorage for 
ships of any burthen. St. Salvador, the capital, also called Cidade 
de Bahia, was originally the seat of the supreme government of 
Brazil: it consists of two parts, one built on low ground near the 
shore, where the commerce is carried on, and the other on a 
high hill, which being considered the most healthy, is the re^ 
sidence of all the people of consequence. Its population is said 
to be nearly equal to that of Rio de Janeiro, and is stated at not 
less than seventy thousand souls. The houses are built with laU 
ticed windows and balconies, similar to those in Rio de Janeiro. 
The churches are the public buildings most worthy of notice ; they 
are said to be richly ornamented within. The government of the 
city is vested in a viceroy, or governor, who is nominated by the 
court for three years. Here all law proceedings, civil and criminal, 
come before the respective magistrates, whose sentence is in general 
final, though appeals in certain cases may be made to the court at 
Rio de Janeiro. 



( 281 ) 



The town is tolerably defended, also the bay, as well as circum- 
stances will permit. On the shore is a royal arsenal, and numerous 
houses for stores, &c. The custom-house and wharfs are conveniently 
situated. Ships of war have been built here, also many very large 
and fine vessels for the merchant service. For these purposes a large 
supply of fine timber was (and, I presume, continues to be) readily 
obtained from the interior from the number of fine rivers which flow 
into the bay. The wood holds iron better and is superior to our 
oak. 

The manners and customs of the people differ little from those of 
the inhabitants of the capital ; but it is said that in the best societies 
here, more gaiety and refinement prevail, and the higher classes are 
more sociable, than in Rio de Janeiro. A taste for music is general ; 
there are few houses without the guitar, and all the more respect- 
able families have piano-fortes. The ladies dress in the English 
style, and ornament themselves with gold chains : they wear very 
few diamonds ; their favourite gem is the chrysolite. For deshabille 
at home they wear a kind of loose dress, over which they throw a 
veil on the entrance of strangers. They are considered as far less in- 
dustrious than the females of the southern districts. The domestic 
dress of the men consists of a jacket and loose trowsers, made of 
light printed cotton. 

Religious processions take place here, as in Rio de Janeiro, on 
great festivals and rejoicing days ; and these festive occasions are 
distinguished by various amusements, which continue from morning 
to night. At these times the Brazilians have a custom of covering 
the walls and balconies of their houses with beautiful silks made and 
ornamented for the purpose. 

One of the most memorable seasons of rejoicing of late years was 
when the Prince touched at this city on his voyage to Rio de Ja- 
neiro, and remained several days. The inhabitants testified their 
loyalty and attachment to him by every public demonstration of joy, 
and by a display of all the grandeur and magnificence which they 

o o 



( m ) 



had means to furnish. As a more solid proof of their attachment 
and regard, they unanimously voted to subscribe a sum equal to half 
a million sterling to build a palace for the royal family, if the Prince 
would condescend to reside among them. 

The climate is always warm, but is refreshed by the sea-breeze, 
and is in some degree tempered by the long absence of the sun, the 
nights being of almost uniform length throughout the year. Though 
hotter than Rio de Janeiro, Bahia is considered much more health- 
ful, having a more airy situation, and being better supplied with 
water. The practice of bathing is very general, and most of the 
houses have conveniences for this purpose. 

Bahia is plentifully supplied with provisions. Beef and pork are 
in abundance ; the former is decidedly bad, the latter tolerable. 
Fish are in great plenty and variety, and form a principal article in 
the diet of the inhabitants. - Cold fish, with sallad, is the general sup^ 
per of almost all ranks ; even the rich desire nothing more for this 
repast in family. Numbers of retail shopkeepers, who sell wine, 
cheese, groceries, &c, buy fish and fry it, and afterwards retail it in 
small quantities. Poultry is in plenty, but not cheap ; vegetables, 
and pulse of every description, are in very great profusion. The mar- 
kets are well supplied with all the tropical fruits, many of which are 
said to be in great perfection, particularly the pine, the mango, and 
the banana ; the latter is esteemed the best in America. Preserved 
fruits are in great abundance, owing to the cheapness of sugar ; great 
varieties of them are sold in the streets, and two or three preserved 
limes in a cup of syrup may be bought for a penny. Even the lower 
orders conclude the meanest dinner with this delicious delicacy. 

The inns, and houses for the accommodation of strangers, are as 
bad, if not worse, here than in any other part of Brazil. The owners 
are indifferent to the comfort of their guests, and, indeed, have no 
motive to be otherwise ; for the Portugueze pay very poorly for bare 
necessaries, and generally go to the place where they can obtain 
them the cheapest. 



( 283 ) 



The soil of this capitania is peculiar, and is esteemed the best in 
Brazil for the growth of the sugar-cane. This advantage, and the 
conveniences arising from the numerous rivers that flow from the in- 
terior into the bay, have occasioned the establishment of many sugar 
plantations, undoubtedly the finest in the country, which have pro- 
duced immense quantities of that article. The soil most adapted to 
the plant, and held in the highest estimation, is a black greasy loam, 
apparently a deposition from the rivers, containing a large quantity 
of vegetable matter. 

The mode of cultivating the cane has already been detailed. If 
planted in new soil, it is fit for cutting in fourteen months, but in old 
and poorer land it requires eighteen or twenty months. When ripe, 
the canes are cut and dressed by taking off the top leaves, &c, which 
afford excellent provender for cattle ; they are then brought to the 
mill, which is composed of three wooden or iron cylinders, moving 
on their axes in a perpendicular position, and between them the 
canes are repeatedly passed until all the juice is expressed, and they 
are reduced to a mass of dry fibres. 

The liquor is conducted through spouts to a large boiler or clari- 
fier, where a certain quantity of alkaline matter, called temper, is 
added to it*. Afterwards it is conducted to the largest of a range 
of boilers, consisting of three, or sometimes four, one less than an- 
other. The largest seldom contains more than one hundred gallons. 
Here the syrup boils for a certain time, and is continually skimmed ; 
it is then laded to the next, where it continues to boil until more of 
the aqueous fluid is evaporated ; after which, it is laded into the third 
boiler, and is there sometimes sufficiently boiled without removing it 
into the fourth. They judge of its consistency by the touch; a little 



* A lixivium of strong ashes is made, and a quantity of lime is put into the alkaline 
liquor: or sometimes the ashes are mixed with a larger proportion of lime, and the clear 
liquor running from the mixture is added to the fluid in various quantities, at the discretion 
of the negro who manages the process, without one ray of knowledge relative to its nature. 

o o 2 



( 284 ) 



of the syrup is taken between the thumb and finger, and if it forms 
threads, and breaks on being drawn about an inch, it is supposed to 
be boiled sufficiently f . It is then gently laded into earthen pots of the 
form of a sugar-loaf, about two feet deep and ten inches in diame- 
ter at the open end, where, on cooling, it becomes concrete. In 
the lower end of each pot is a small hole, which at first is nearly 
closed ; but after the sugar begins to cool, it is unstopped, and a 
piece of cane is put in to admit the molasses to drain. Soon after 
the moulds are filled, they are removed into an airy room, where 
they are placed so that the molasses drain into a large cistern, from 
whence they are conveyed into the fermenting vats, which are re- 
ceptacles for all the refuse of every description in the sugar-house. 
In the process of fermentation much depends on the quality of the 
wood of which the vats are made ; some of them bring the liquor 
into a proper state for distillation two or three days sooner than 
others. 

The greatest part of the sugars made here are clayed, by a very 
simple operation, which consists merely in covering the sugar with 
very moist clay, the water from which percolates the mass, and car- 
ries with it the remaining molasses. When the earthy matter be- 
comes dry, more is applied until the sugar is perfectly freed, and 
nearly white. After remaining in the drying-house about six weeks, 
the moulds are placed with the large end downwards, and the sugar- 
loaves leave them ; they are then beaten down to powder in large 
strong cases, constructed of four entire planks, and the two ends, ge- 
nerally about eight feet long, and about twenty-six inches square -f-, 
holding from fifteen to sixteen hundred-weight. The cases, when 
filled, are nailed down, and are ready for shipping. 



* In skimming, lading, and managing the syrup during the operation, the negroes display 
great dexterity. 

f Large trees are cut into planks of these dimensions for making the cases, which are pre- 
ferred to hogsheads. 



( 285 ) 



The principal points to be attended to in making sugar are, first, 
that the canes be all ripe, and well cleaned from trash and leaves ; 
next, that they be immediately crushed, and not suffered to lie in 
heaps to heat ; and thirdly, that the rollers, and all the passages for 
the liquor, be well cleansed by washing as often as necessary. Re- 
specting the temper, various opinions prevail ; every negro has his 
peculiar mode of mixing and applying it. Canes that grow on some 
lands require more temper than those that grow on others, and a wet 
or a dry season will make considerable difference in the juice ; but 
these facts are here entirely unknown, ,or very little attended to. 

The middle parts of the sugar loaves being finer than the tops and 
bottoms, are by some houses kept separate, and sold at a better 
price. In almost every family they refine Muscovado sugar, when 
they wish to have some peculiarly white. The process is very simple, 
and is practised daily in the coffee-houses. 

More sugar is shipped from Bahia than from all the other ports 
of Brazil united, and in general it is superior in quality ; that from 
certain plantations is decidedly so. It is not, however, esteemed of 
so strong a body as our best from the West Indies. 

The tobacco of this capitania is peculiar to it ; and, by an exclu- 
sive privilege, no other part of Brazil was allowed to cultivate the 
same sort. It has given rise to much commerce, and has enriched 
many families. It was the most esteemed sort, not only in Portu- 
gal, but in Spain, and all her colonies, where it has been sold at great 
prices. Great quantities of it were consumed in Barbary ; and on 
many parts of the coast of Guinea the demand for it was such that 
it was almost impossible to carry on trade for gold, ivory, gums, and 
oil without it. The mode of growing and manufacturing it is as 
follows : — First a good piece of ground is prepared, the finer 
dressed the better ; the seed is sown broad-cast, and when the 
plants are about six weeks or two months grown, they are trans- 
planted into ground prepared as before. In eight or ten months they 
arrive at their full growth, and when ripe the leaves are taken from 

9 



( 286 ) 



the Stem, which frequently grows from four to seven feet high. They 
are laid upon the ground, or, in preference, upon any support which 
will preserve them from absorbing moisture, and admit a free circula- 
tion of air underneath. When they become in a slight degree 
withered, they are twisted with a strong winch, the end of one leaf 
uniting with the other, and the twist is coiled into a roll weighing 
from thirty to forty pounds. By this operation the juice of the leaf 
is expressed, which is viscid, and when oxidated becomes of a black 
colour, like molasses. The tobacco, after this last operation, is fit 
for commerce. 

It is an object highly worthy the attention of the Portugueze go- 
vernment, to introduce other modes of curing tobacco. There can 
be no doubt that the soil and climate are congenial to it, and, were 
it properly prepared, it would probably equal any in Virginia, and 
become as great an article of commerce among the northern nations. 
Should such a measure be pursued, how many cargoes of this com- 
modity alone would arrive in our ports, and from thence be distri- 
buted to the different markets of Europe ! 

Cotton has of late been grown here in considerable quantities, and 
has been sent to England at nearly the same price with that grown 
in Pernambuco, and its plantations are daily increasing. 

Coffee is grown in great quantities, but is not esteemed so fine as 
that from Rio de Janeiro. Rice is produced in tolerable quantity, 
and its quality is superior : but the husk is so difficult to separate 
from the grain, that a great part is bruised in the operation, and is 
thus rendered of little value. The only method of cleansing it that 
has hitherto been practised, is by wooden pestles worked in wooden 
mortars, either by hand or machinery. 

The beautiful dye-wood, called Brazil-wood, is shipped from this 
port and Pernambuco, of a quality much superior to that of Rio de 
Janeiro. This is one of the articles prohibited from general com- 
merce, being the property of the royal household. Fustic in small 
quantities is brought from the interior. 



( 287 ) 



The indigo made here is so far inferior to that imported from India 
as scarcely to be worth mentioning. It neither repays the planter 
for his trouble in growing and manufacturing it, nor the merchant 
who sells it. There is a general opinion among all who make indigo, 
that some part of the process is very prejudicial to the health of the 
negroes, who frequently become sick, and often die while employed 
in it. This effect cannot be produced by the labour, which is very 
light and trivial, therefore it is more probably owing to the gas which 
escapes from the leaves in fermentation. 

The above are the principal articles of commerce produced in the 
district. Bahia has a considerable trade with St. Catherine's, and 
other ports on the coast, from whence are exported various articles 
that may suit the market, which is continually fluctuating. A great 
number of fine brigs and small vessels are employed in this trade. 

Produce to a considerable amount was exported to the River Plata, 
from whence a great quantity of hides and tallow were returned ; 
but the trade has never been so favourable as it appeared, on account 
of the great difficulty attending the payments. It is considered 
that the Spaniards in the River Plata are much indebted to the 
Portugueze. 

The imports to Bahia from Europe consist in general of the same 
articles with those specified in the description of Rio de Janeiro. 

Respecting the mineralogy of this capitania, I can say but little. It 
is well known to have produced the largest piece of native copper 
that has ever appeared, being in weight upwards of 2,000lbs. The 
piece was discovered several years ago by some persons who were 
preparing to wash for gold, but, contrary to the general laws of na- 
ture, it was found perfectly insulated, and not a vestige nor the 
slightest appearance of a vein of that metal was to be traced. 

To the north of Bahia are the capitanias of Pernambuco, Seara, 
and Maranham, the interior of which is very little known, though 
some parts of the coast are tolerably populous. Pernambuco, though 
situated nearly in the latitude of eight degrees, is considered healthy. 



( 288 ) 



The town is built on a rising ground, much exposed, and constantly 
refreshed by the sea-breeze. It has many excellent edifices, and is 
supposed to contain more opulent merchants, in proportion to the 
population, than any other place in Brazil. It produces vanilla, 
cocoa, and a considerable quantity of sugar ; but the chief article of 
its trade is cotton, which for many years had the reputation of being 
superior to any other, but of late it has much deteriorated, from neg- 
lect, either in the growth, or in the gathering the pods and cleaning 
it from the seeds, or probably from general inattention to the whole 
management of it. In delicacy of colour and staple, it has been 
surpassed by the cotton called South Sea Island Georgia, of which 
great importations have been made to this country, and for which 
great prices have been given. The cotton, when ready for packing, 
is pressed into raw hides, so hard as to form very heavy packages. 
The operation is superintended by an officer authorized by Govern- 
ment, who puts a stamp upon it describing its quality, which enables 
the shipper to pass it through the custom-house, where it pays a 
small duty on exportation. This port has loaded many ships an- 
nually, and continues to export a considerable quantity, though at 
reduced prices, owing to the present distracted state of European 
commerce. 

The district of Seara is but little known, and enjoys very trifling 
trade. Maranham, though a very small district, has of late raised 
itself considerably into notice by its excellent productions, which 
are the same as those of Pernambuco. Cotton is the staple article, 
with some sugar and rice, several cargoes of which are annually ex- 
ported. 

The dye-wood of these districts is considered excellent, and is 
sometimes shipped from this coast. The tree which produces the 
annatto is very common, and the seeds from which it is washed are 
of the best quality, and might be obtained in great abundance, 
Cocoa may be grown in any quantity ; capsicum, pimento, ginger, 
&c. are very plentiful. 



( 289 ) 



The markets are well stored with fish and meat, the latter very in- 
different in its kind. Poultry, vegetables, and fruits are in great 
abundance. 

St. Louis, the capital, is built upon an island, and is esteemed 
healthy, though so near the equator. Several rivers run into the 
bay, which afford an eligible conveyance for the produce of the 
vicinity. The island is said to contain 20,000 inhabitants, and the 
population in the rivers is by no means inconsiderable. 

The capitania of Para is considered the largest in Brazil ; its ex- 
tent is imperfectly known. The principal town is called Belem, where 
the governor resides, and, its government being superior, it may be 
said to preside over several of the neighbouring districts. The land 
is low and unhealthy ; the great river, or port, is much interrupted 
by shoals and currents. It is a dangerous coast, and exposed to a 
continual swell, so as to render it hazardous for ships to anchor upon 
it, as they roll so much that they not only endanger their masts, but 
are subject to strain. 

The town of Para is situated on the river Tocantins, the naviga- 
tion of which is difficult, and is seldom attempted, except by small 
craft : the Confiance sloop of war with great care sailed up it, and 
anchored near the town, several days previous to the expedition 
against Cayenne. The town may contain ten thousand inhabitants, 
who are in general very poor, probably from want of commerce ; for 
although the great rivers Tocantins and Amazons have their source, 
the latter in Peru, and the former in the capitania of Goiaz, — though 
they receive almost millions of inferior streams in their course through 
immense tracts of territory, yet they are not productive of any com- 
merce of consequence. The few exports from Para consist of a little 
rice and cocoa, a few drugs, &c. to Maranham, from whence they 
are embarked for Europe. A few small brigs were sent hither from 
Barbadoes, after the taking of Cayenne : but the trade must be a 
bad one, as the inhabitants are in general too poor to purchase 
English manufactures, except those of necessity ; nor could the pro- 

p p 



( 290 ) 



duce of Para be an object of interest, as a cargo is at all times very 
precarious, and difficult to be obtained. 

The climate is hot, as may well be supposed, from its lying so near 
the equinoctial. Thunder, with lightning and rain, occur generally 
every afternoon, which cool the air very much, and render the heat 
less disagreeable. 

On conversing with creditable men who had lived many years at 
Para, Maranham, and upon the coast, I never heard them relate the 
strange accounts of the Indians which Estalla has related. As a 
Spaniard, he seems to be amusing the public with the actions of his 
own countrymen in Chili, and to aim, in common with all the writers 
of his nation, to prejudice the world against the Portugueze. 

The capitania of Goyaz is bounded chiefly by Minas Geraes on 
the east, Matto G rosso on the west, and Para on the north. Its 
greatest extent in length is from lat. 6° south to 21°. Villa Boa, its 
principal town, is situated in lat. 16° south, about eighty leagues to 
the west of Paracatu, from whence there is a good road. Here is a 
permutation-house, where all the gold found in the capitania is per- 
muted. The governor is elected for three years, after which he is, 
generally appointed to Bahia or Minas Geraes. In the capitania 
are many gold-mines, some of which produce gold of a very fine 
quality. Diamonds have been found in some parts, which are dif- 
ferent in their appearance from those found in Cerro do Frio, having 
more brilliancy on their exterior ; but they are in general not of so 
pure a water, though of a very desirable size. As this fine district is 
so distant from the coast, it has very little commerce in any of its 
productions, except the valuable substances above-mentioned, and 
cattle, which are bred on the frontiers ; also some cotton, and occa- 
sionally a few peculiar articles, which are sent to Rio de Janeiro. 
The mules on the return-journey are all loaded with salt, iron, cheap 
cotton-prints, woollens (particularly baizes), hats, fire-arms, powder 
and shot, and a variety of artificers' tools. When any of the inha- 
bitants have any thing peculiarly precious to dispose of, they gene- 



( 291 ) 



rally take it to Rio de Janeiro, and lay out the proceeds chiefly in 
the purchase of negroes, (they being at all times the first object,) 
iron, salt, and other commodities. 

The population is very small in comparison to the extent of the 
district, but is likely to be increased by new settlers ; although the in- 
digent in Villa Rica, Tejuco, and other places in the mining country, 
are little inclined to remove out of society, even for the chance of 
riches : in fact, having no negroes fit to work, and being totally des- 
titute of exertion themselves, all situations are to them indifferent. 
These are by no means the class of people who can be styled adven- 
turers. The poorer class of inhabitants who have obtained a small por- 
tion of gold, sometimes make a journey to Paracatu or Villa Rica to 
purchase what negroes they want. This capitania has been very little 
explored, and scarcely any thing is known of its productions beyond 
what is above stated, nor are any others sought after, though it can- 
not be doubted that there are many substances in all departments of 
natural history which might form the basis of a considerable com- 
merce ; indeed, it is not unreasonable to presume that the soil con- 
tains the same variety of metals as the district of Mihas Geraes: 
Many persons from thence, with whom I have conversed, speak of 
it with delight as being a fine country, having numerous rivers well 
stored with fish, woods abounding with fine birds, which afford ex- 
cellent diversion to the sportsman ; also a great variety of animals. 

This capitania communicates with Matto Grosso, St. Paul's, and 
Para, by rivers which are navigable, though frequently interrupted 
by falls. 



pp 2 



( 292 ) 



CHAP. XVIII. 

Geographical Description of the Capitania of Mat to Grosso. 

J^ESPECTING this extensive portion of Brazil, I had an oppor- 
tunity of gaining considerable information, being intimately ac- 
quainted with the commanding officer of the military force stationed 
there, Colonel Martinez, an engineer of extraordinary merit, who 
had made four journeys to Matto Grosso, and had resided there 
some years. He was kind enough to give me a description of his 
route from St. Paul's to the capital of that province, and promised 
me a chart of the navigable rivers and roads from thence to Para, 
which had been formed by officers of his party, together with docu- 
ments in illustration of it. But he being hastily called away on a 
particular service, was prevented from executing his promise, and I 
could only profit by the verbal description which he repeatedly gave 
me. This description, as proceeding from a person of such un- 
doubted veracity, it was my intention to give to the public ; but, 
after my return to England, I was agreeably surprised to find a MS., 
nearly corresponding with it, in the hands of that eminent geogra- 
pher, Mr. Arrowsmith, who has liberally permitted me to make use 
of it. To his excellent map, compiled according to the latest MS. 
charts communicated from Brazil, I beg leave to refer the reader for 
an accurate delineation of the particular localities here detailed. 

This extensive capitania is separated from the neighbouring terri- 
tory belonging to Spain by the intervening channels of the rivers 
Paraguay, Madeira, Mamore, and Guapore, which form a broad and 
natural trench around it of five hundred leagues in circuit, by means 



( 293 ) 



of which, and by upwards of thirty rivers that empty themselves into 
it, a communication is opened through many and distant points with 
the interior of Brazil. This capitania, from its geographical position, 
has ever been considered as the grand outwork of Brazil, not only 
because it covers the interior divisions of this vast portion of the new 
continent, which is the cradle of its greatest rivers, branching in in- 
numerable channels, and enriched with great and untouched trea- 
sures ; but also because, by this extensive channel, the Portugueze 
are enabled to penetrate to the establishments of Spain in Peru. 

The "River Araguaya, or Grande. 

The eastern boundary of the capitania of Matto Grosso, sepa- 
rating it from that of Goiaz, is the river Grande, two hundred 
leagues from Villa Bella. This river, known in the state of Pard by 
the name of Araguaya only, which is conferred on it by the nume- 
rous nations inhabiting its banks, has its remotest source in lat. 19°» 
and running north and south, intersected at various points by the 
meridian of 52° 30', flows in lat. 6° into the Tocantines, wherein it 
loses its name ; and both, thus united in one ample stream, continue 
their course for three hundred and seventy leagues, and fall into the 
southern estuary of the mighty river Amazons in lat. 1° 40' between 
the two celebrated bays of Marapata and Limseiro, opposite to the 
great island of Joannes, or Murajo, and twenty leagues west of the 
city of Para. — The river Das Mortes, which rises far to the west of 
the Rio Grande, and forms its highest western branch, running for a 
considerable space to the east, and afterwards north, with an entire 
course of one hundred and fifty leagues, till it enters the Araguaya 
in lat. 12°, is entirely within the capitania of Matto Grosso. 

The river Araguaya is peopled by many tribes of warlike sa- 
vages; it abounds in all the productions peculiar to the state of 
Para, and affords an uninterrupted navigation from the city of 
that name, and by the river, with the centre of Brazil and the ca- 
pitania of Matto Grosso. The same is practicable by the river Das 



( 294 ) 



Mortes, and other western branches which enter the Rio Grande 
below. These branches, no doubt, contain unexplored mines ; for 
there is no physical reason why gold should be found in the rivers 
that enter the Araguaya on the eastern side, (where, besides Villa 
Boa, are situated several villages belonging to the capitania of Goiaz,) 
and not likewise in the branches on the opposile side. It is positive- 
ly known that the river Das Mortes is auriferous, and hence it is fair 
to conclude that the smaller streams which flow into it are much 
more so, for the nearer the source the greater is the quantity of gold 
found. The mines of one of its western branches were abandoned, 
not from the absence or scarcity of the precious metal, but because, 
being remote from the road, and in the midst of a swamp peopled 
by savages, the few settlers could not get conveniently supplied with 
arms, implements, and other articles. 

In some of these mines gold above twenty-three carats has been 
found, but the greater partis only of 17, and of a green colour, being 
combined with a large proportion of silver. 

The River Chingu, 
the clearest, and one of the largest and most copious, branches of the 
Amazon, which it enters on the south side, after a course of three 
hundred leagues, in lat. 1°42', and long. 53°, seventy leagues west 
of the city of Para in a direct line, but one hundred of navigation, is 
confined in a great part of its course to the capitania of Matto Grosso. 

Its remote sources suppty, not only the lands in which rise also 
the branches and rivers forming to the east and north the upper part 
of the river Cuiaba, but also that largejspace north of the river Das 
Mortes, intersected by the great road from Goiaz, extending as far 
as the river Porrudos. There is a tradition among the guides of the 
Sutaos*of Pira and the Indians established on the banks of the 



* Sutao. This is a place understood to be uninhabitable for Europeans, being the re- 
sidence of uncivilized Indians, and covered with almost impenetrable woods. 



( 295 ) 



Chingu, that, after mounting the first large falls of this river, much 
gold was found in it, of which the Jesuits, those great explorers, ob- 
tained a large quantity. It is probable that the now unknown 
Minas dos Martirios, famous as the first discovery made by Bart". 
Bueno, and of which I have heard repeated mention in St. Paul's, 
exist only on some of the many branches that form the river Chingu. 
For this enterprising man, after having discovered those mines, re- 
turning to St. Paul's in order to engage negroes and provide imple- 
ments for extracting those abundant treasures, which to this day 
continue to elude the searches of others, retraced his course ; but 
passing by the mines of Cuiaba, which had been just discovered and 
were found wonderfully productive, he was there deserted by the 
greatest part of his followers. Fearing that he should lose the rest 
also, he turned eastward, and, in his anxiety to avoid the mines of 
Cuiaba, got still farther from those of Dos Martirios, until he lost 
himself in the immense wastes, wherein he wandered many months, 
and at length accidentally found the mines of Goiaz, which his 
father had before seen. These, like all the rest, proved very pro- 
ductive at the beginning. 

This rich and new discovery soon diverted the attention of adven- 
turers from the preceding ; and the route to the Minas dos Martirios, 
together with their positive situation, have long been lost in a vague 
tradition of their existence. As the place was explored without the 
assistance of a compass, or any of the means necessary for defining 
its geographical position, there could not but prevail much doubt 
and uncertainty respecting it. Now there is no such discovery on 
the river Tocantins, which comprehends the whole capitania of 
Goiaz : the first account places it near a river, which indeed runs 
into the Amazons, like the Tocantins, but which was sought for 
passing near the upper branches, and west of the river Cuiaba, a 
situation in which the river Chingu alone is found ; other explorers 
place it on the Araguay, which renders it useless to look there, 
for it is more than two hundred leagues north-west of the place 



( 296 ) 



sought. This is substantiated by a fact of later date, which is as 
follows: — A grandson of Bart". Bueno, under the direction of an 
ancient journal of this discovery, describing the route to it, descended 
by the river Das Mortes, and entered some extensive plains on its 
western bank, on which he travelled westward for some days, when 
he arrived at a plain covered with white Manga ba trees, which were 
designated in the journal. From this place they had a sight of some 
detached high mountains between the north and west, three of which 
were of the figure specified, and indicated the situation of the Minas 
dos Martirios. An unexpected attack of the Indians, in which the 
chief and many others of the adventurers were killed, dispersed the 
party, and frustrated the object at the moment when it appeared to 
be already attained. 

The river abounds in various products : cocoa is in plenty ; there 
are some spices, and various indigenous fruits. 

The River Tapajos 
is the third which derives its copious sources, flowing through nume- 
rous large branches, from the capitania of Matto Grosso. It runs 
north between the Madeira and the Chingu for three hundred 
leagues, flowing into the Amazons in lat. 2° 24' 50", and long. 55°, 
which is the geographical position of the town of Santarem, situated 
at its mouth one hundred and eighteen leagues from the city of Para, 
and one hundred and sixty-two by the shortest navigation. The 
river Tapajos rises in the plains of the Parexis, so called from an 
Indian nation which inhabits them. These plains occupy a vast 
space, not level, but formed by undulating heaps of sand and light 
earth, resembling large waves. The spectator who is in the midst of 
them ever sees before him a distant and extended mount ; he ad-? 
vances towards it by a gentle and long declivity, traverses the 
plain, and advances by an ascent equally gentle until he gains im- 
perceptibly the heights he saw ; another eminence then presents it- 
self, and he proceeds with the same recurring circumstances. The 

9 



( 297 ) 



soil of these wide plains is sandy, and so light that loaded beasts in 
passing sink into it so much as to impede their progress. The pas- 
turage is poor, consisting of a grass composed of wiry stalks a foot 
high, and small rough lancet-shaped leaves ; the animals in grazing 
pluck them up with the roots covered with sand ; on this account 
the passage by land is difficult and tedious ; though, on finding any 
of the streams, which abound in these plains, there is grass and other 
mild herbage, which afford tolerable pasturage. The plains of Pa- 
rexis form, to a large extent and breadth, the summit of those high 
mountains of the same name, and are situated on some of the most 
elevated land in all Brazil ; for from them descend the two greatest 
rivers of South America, — the Paraguay, as well in its own nume- 
rous heads, as in its great and higher branches, the Jauru, the Sypo- 
tuba, and the Cuiaba, — and the Madeira, which is the largest river 
that flows into the Amazons on the south. 

The Tapajos, flowing in a direction contrary to that of the above- 
named river, rises on these mountains. Its westermost branch is the 
river Arinos, which intwines its sources with those of the Cuiaba at a 
short distance from those of the Paraguay. The river Arinos has a 
western branch, called Rio Negro, from which, to the point where it 
is navigable, there is a passage of eight leagues over-land to the river 
Cuiaba, below its upper and greatest falls; and, in like manner, from 
the Arinos itself the passage to the same part of the river Cuiaba is 
twelve leagues. 

The Arinos is auriferous at its springs, and in 1747 the mines of 
Santa Isabel were discovered in it, but immediately abandoned, as 
not answering the expectations created in those fortunate times by 
the great quantities of gold drawn from the mines of Cuiaba and 
Matto Grosso. The lands were infested by dangerous tribes of war- 
like Indians. 

The river Sumidouro empties itself on the south side into the Arinos, 
and its source being a short distance from that of the Sypotuba, a large 
western branch of the Paraguay, there is an easy communication from 

Q Q 



{{ 298^ ); 



one fiver to the other. The famous discoverer, Joao de Souza Echeve- 
do,in 1746 made this passage: he descended the river Cuiaba,and sail- 
ing up theSypotubato its very sources, he there passed his canoes over- 
land into the Sumidouro, which he navigated, following the current,; 
notwithstanding that the river runs for some distance under-ground., 
and thence derives its appellation. After this, he passed into the 
Arinos, and thence into the Tapajos, where he surmounted the falls, 
though more difficult than those of the Madeira, and discovered 
many symptoms of gold in the river of Tres Barms, a western arm 
of the Tapajos, a hundred leagues below the springs of the Arinos. 
West of the Sumidouro, and in the plains of Parexis, the river Xacu- 
rutina has its origin to the north of the river Jauru : it is famous for 
a lake, situated in one of its branches, where every year is produced 
a great quantity of salt, which is a constant cause of war among the 
Indians. Some navigators make the Xacurutina an arm of the Ari- 
nos, and others of the Sumidouro. In these plains of Parexis, termi- 
nating to the west in the high mountains so denominated, which, ex- 
tending two hundred leagues in a north-north-west direction, front the 
Guapore at a distance of fifteen or twenty leagues, springs the 
river Juruena, between the heads of the Sarare and the Guapore, a 
league east of the former and two west of the latter. This river, the 
largest and westermost branch of the Tapajos, rises in lat. 14° 42', 
twenty leagues north-north-east of Villa Bella, and, running north 
one hundred and twenty leagues, flows into the Arinos, and with it 
forms the bed of the Tapajos. 

The Juruena receives on both sides many small rivers, those from 
the west affording many practicable communications by short pas- 
sages over-land with the Guapore and its confluent streams. The 
uppermost of these, which is nearest to Villa Bella, is the Securiu, 
navigable even there, and almost to its source. This is a league 
north of the principal source of the river Sarare, which, a quarter of a 
league from its head, is three yards deep and five broad. Thus sail- 
ing up the Juruena into the Securiu, and making from its source the 



( 299 ) 



short land-passage of a league to the Sarare, the navigator may 
reach Villa Bella in less than eight days, without any other obstacle 
than that of the fall formed by the Sarare, three leagues below its 
source, where it precipitates itself from the Parexis mountains on 
the western slope : this difficulty may be surmounted in detail, or by 
at once passing the four leagues, for the Sarare from its fall becomes 
immediately navigable to the capital of Matto Grosso. A league 
north of the source of the Sarare is the first head of the river Galera, 
the second confluent of the Guapore below Villa Bella; and a league 
east of the same head rises the Ema, a western branch of the Se- 
curiu, affording equal facility of communication. The Galera has 
three other sources north of the first in the plains of the Parexis, all 
ample streams ; the last and most northerly, called Sabara, is distant 
little more than a league from the source of the river Juina, a large 
western branch of the Juruena. Thus, by the Juina and the Securiu, 
with a crossing of 'five or six leagues, so as to pass the falls of the 
Galera on the western scarp of the mountain, the Juruena may be 
connected with the Guapore. 

Lastly, the Juruena may be navigated to its upper fall, which is 
within two leagues of its own source. The fall is formed by two 
small leaps, the river being, even in this part, thirty yards broad and 
of great depth ; from hence downwards it flows with great rapidity, 
yet its falls are not greater, and are more passable, than those of the 
Arinos. With the same circumstances, and by similar short land- 
passages, a communication is practicable from the Juruena with the 
rivers Guapore and Jauru, which are to the eastward of it, although 
these two rivers precipitate themselves from the south side of the 
Parexis mountains, where they rise, and immediately form numerous 
and extensive falls. 

From the geographical position of the Tapajos, it is evident that 
this river facilitates navigation and commerce from the maritime city 
of Para to the mines of Matto Grosso and Cuiaba, by means of its 
Jarge branches, the Juruena and Arinos ; if the short passages over- 

q q 2 



( 300 ) 

land should be found troublesome to drag canoes, the goods may be 
forwarded immediate^ on mules. This navigation to Matto Grosso 
is at least two hundred leagues shorter than that performed through 
the Madeira and Guapore ; it is consequently less tedious and ex- 
pensive, and equally advantageous to the mines of Cuiaba. The na- 
vigation of the river Tapajos might lead also to new discoveries in 
the vast unexplored parts of this river, up to its entrance into the 
plains of the Parexis, and their products might add to those of the 
extensive regions on the Amazons. Besides this, the river is known 
to be auriferous for a great part of its course : it is known also, that, 
passing from the Juruena into its western arm, the river Camarare, 
and the heads of the river Jamary or Das Candeas, which, running 
in broad streams down the eastern side of the Parexis mountains, 
enters the Madeira, there are mines which have inspired great hopes, 
though but lately seen, after a fruitless search of twenty years. 

The River Paraguay 
has its remote springs to the west of the heads of the Arinos in 
latitude 13°, and, after a southern course of six hundred leagues, 
enters the ocean under the appellation of the Rio de la Plata. 
The heads of the Paraguay are seventy leagues north-east from 
Villa Bella, and forty leagues north from Cuiaba, and divided 
into many branches, and already forming complete rivers, which, as 
they run south, successively unite, and form the channel of this im- 
mense river, which is immediately navigable. To the west, a short dis- 
tance from the main source of the Paraguay ,is that of the Sypotuba, 
which disembogues on its west bank in lat. 15° 50', after a course of 
sixty leagues. In the upper part of this river, and near its western 
branch, called the Jurubauba, was formerly a gold-mine, which was 
worked with considerable profit ; but the superior advantages de- 
rived from others subsequently explored in Matto Grosso and Cuiaba, 
caused it to be abandoned, and its site is not now known with cer- 
tainty. The little river Cabaral, also auriferous, enters the Paraguay 



( 301 ) 



on the west side, three leagues below the mouth of the Sypotuba. 
On the banks of the latter lives a nation of Indians, called Barba- 
dos, from the distinction peculiar to themselves, among all the Indian 
nations, of having large beards. 

The Boriras Araviras inhabit the banks of the Cabaral : they are 
a mixture of two different nations, who in the year 1797 sent four 
chiefs of their tribe, accompanied by their mother, to Villa Bella, in 
order to solicit the friendship of the Portugueze. The nation called 
Pararione lives in their neighbourhood, close by the Sypotuba. A 
league below the mouth of the Cabaral, on the east bank of the Pa- 
raguay, is Villa Maria, a small and useful establishment, founded in 
1778. Seven leagues south of Villa Maria, and on the west bank of 
the Paraguay, the river Jauru disembogues into it in lat. 16° 24'. 
This river is remarkable for the boundary-mark erected at its mouth 
in 1754, as well as for being entirely Portugueze, together with the 
lands on its south bank, and bordering on the Spanish possessions. 
It rises in the plains of the Parexis in lat. 14° 42', and long. 58° 30', 
and running south to lat. 15° 45', the situation of the Register of the 
same name, it there turns to the south-east for thirty-four leagues, 
till, by an entire course of sixty leagues, it reaches its junction with 
the Paraguay. There are salt- water-pits, which in part have sup- 
plied Matto Grosso ever since its foundation with salt : they are in 
the interior of the country, seven leagues from the Register, and ex- 
tend to a place called Salina de Almeida, from the name of the per- 
son who first employed himself in these works. 

These salt-pits are situated along the margins of broad marshy bot- 
toms, in which are found fish of the same kind with those in the Pa- 
raguay. The Salina de Almeida is not far distant from the bank of 
Jauru, and the great quantity of saline liquid found in it continues 
three leagues further to the south, where a junction is formed with 
another from the west, called Pitas, westward of which are high and 
dry plains, where are found numerous large circles, formed by a 
species of palm called Carandas. These plains terminate nine leagues 



( 302 ) 



west of the Salina de Almeida, in a large pool or marsh, called Pao- 
pique, which runs to the south. 

The confluence of the Jauru with the Paraguay is a point of much 
importance : it guards and covers the great road between Villa Bella 
Cuiaba, and their intermediate establishments, and in the same man- 
ner commands the navigation of both the rivers, and defends the en- 
trance into the interior of the latter capitania. The Paraguay from 
this place has a free navigation upwards, almost to its sources, which 
are scarcely seventy leagues distant, with no other impediment than a 
large fall. These sources are said to contain diamonds. 

The mark placed at the mouth of the Jauru is a pyramid of beau- 
tiful marble, brought to this distant point from Lisbon. It bears in- 
scriptions commemorative of the treaty between the courts of Spain 
and Portugal, by which the respective territories, of which it stands 
as the boundary, were defined. 

The lofty chain of mountains, which extends from the sources of 
the Paraguay near its eastern bank, border the river opposite the 
mouth of the Jauru, and are terminated seven leagues below it by 
the Morro Excalvado in lat. 16° 43'. Eastward of this mount or 
point all is marsh, and nine leagues below it there flows into the east 
side of the Paraguay a deep stream or river, called Rio Novo, dis- 
covered in 1786, which may hereafter afford a navigation to near 
St. Pedro del Rey, when the aquatic plants that obstruct its channel 
are removed. The most distant sources of this river are the rivulets 
of Sta. Anna, Bento Gomez, and others which cross the great road 
of Cuiaba to the west of Cocaes. In lat. 17° 33' the west banks of 
the Paraguay become mountainous at the north point of the Serra 
da Insua, which, three leagues to the south, makes a deep break to 
form the mouth of the lake Gaiba. This lake extends westward, 
and there is a broad canal of four leagues in extent, which comes 
from the north, communicating from the above lake to that of Ube* 
rava, somewhat larger than the Gaiba, situated exactly contiguous 
to the Serra da Insua, on its north side. Six leagues and a half 



( 303 ) 



below the mouth of the Gaiba, and opposite this mountainous bank 
of the Paraguay, is the mouth of the St. Lourenco, formerly called 
Porrudos. Twenty-six leagues above this the river Cuiaba enters its 
western bank in lat. 17° 20', and long. 5?° 5' : these two rivers are 
of great extent; that of Lourenco has its sources in lat. 15°, forty 
leagues east of the town of Cuiaba, receiving (besides the branches 
crossed by the road from Goiaz) other great streams on its east, side, 
such as the Paraiba or Piquiri, which receives the Jaquari and the 
Itiquira, all of moderate size, and navigable. The Itiquira has been 
navigated to its heads, from whence the canoes were dragged over- 
land to the Sucuriu, which falls into the Parana four leagues below 
the mouth of the river Tiete on the opposite side. The rivers Iti- 
quira and Sucuriu were found to have fewer and smaller falls than 
the Taquari, and the land-passage is much shorter and more conve- 
nient than that of the Camapuao, so that this navigation is prefer- 
able to that by the two last-mentioned rivers : it is attended by only 
two obstacles, — many Indians, and a want of provisions. 

The navigation to the town of Cuiaba by, the river of that name, 
from its above-mentioned confluence, is short and easy : in the first 
ten leagues, after passing the two small islands of Ariacuni and Ta- 
rumas, occurs a large plantation of bananas, formed on an embank-- 
ment on the east side of the river. Three leagues above this place 
the Guacho-uassu enters the Cuiaba by its east bank, and on the 
same side, seven leagues farther, the Guacho-mirim. From this 
point the river winds in a north-north-east direction, eleven leagues 
to the island of Pirahim, and from thence makes a large bend to 
the east, receiving numerous streams, and passes the town of Cuiaba, 
which is situated a mile to the eastward of it. This town is ninety- 
six leagues to the east of Villa Bella, and the same distance from the 
confluence of its river with the Paraguay. It is large, and, together 
with its dependencies, may at present contain 30,000 souls. It is 
well pro\ided with meat, fish, fruits, and all sorts of vegetables, at a 
much cheaper rate than at the sea-ports. The country is well 



( 304 ) 



adapted for cultivation, and has rich mines, but in some places little 
water to work them in dry weather. They were discovered in 1718, 
and have been estimated to produce annually above twenty arrobas 
of gold of extremely fine quality. 

Twenty leagues south-west of the town of Cuiaba is the settlement 
of St. Pedro del Rey, the largest of all the adjacent settlements, 
and contains full 2,000 inhabitants It is situated near the western 
side of the rivulet Bento Gomez, which, at the distance of a league 
and a half south of the settlement, forms a large bay, called Rio de 
Janeiro. The river Cuiaba has its sources forty leagues above the 
town, and its banks are cultivated through the greater part of its ex- 
tent, including fourteen leagues below the town, down the stream. 
Four leagues below the principal mouth of the river Porrudos, the 
Paraguay is bordered by the mountains that separate it from Gaiba 
on its western bank, and in this place they obtain the appellation of 
Serra das Pedras de Atnolar, from being composed of a stone of 
which whet-stones are made. This is the only spot which is not in- 
undated by the floods of the river, and is therefore much visited by 
the canoes that navigate it. These Serras terminate two leagues to 
the south in those of the Dourados, immediately below which there 
is a channel on the west side of the Paraguay, which, piercing be- 
tween two high detached mounts, called Cheines, leads to the lake 
Mendiuri, six leagues long, and the largest on the Paraguay. 

From the Dourados the Paraguay runs southward to the Serras of 
Albuquerque, where it touches directly on the northern point, on 
which is situated a town of that name. These Serras form a com- 
pact square of ten leagues, and contain much calcareous stone ; 
the land is considered the best on either side the Paraguay, from 
the river downwards, and only equalled by that on the western mar- 
gins of the lakes Mandiuri and Gaiba. From Albuquerque the 
Paraguay turns to the east, skirting its Serras, which terminate at the 
end of six leagues in the Serra do Rabicho, opposite which, on the 
north bank of the river, is situated the lower southern mouth of the 
9 



( 305 ) 



Paraguay-mirim. This is an arm of the Paraguay, which, termi- 
nating here, forms an island fourteen leagues in length from north to 
south : it is the usual channel for canoes in times of inuudation. 
From the mouth of the Paraguay-mirim the river takes a southerly 
direction to the mouth of the Taquari, navigated annually by flotil- 
las of canoes and other craft, which come from St. Paul's to Cuiaba, 
and even as far as the Register of Jauru, when their destination hap- 
pens to be Villa Bella. 

As this navigation is an object of great importance, from its con- 
necting two distinct districts, the following compendious description 
of the route pursued in it may not prove uninteresting. It is ab- 
stracted from the diary of a man of science, who performed the 
journey a few years ago, in the month of October, when the Paraguay 
begins to retire to its own channel. The description may commence 
at the Taquari, as the voyage from thence to Cuiaba and the Jauru 
has already been detailed. The largest of the many mouths of the 
Taquari in the Paraguay is in lat. 19° 15', and long. 54°. In the first 
ten leagues of navigation, the channel of the river is lost, as it crosses 
some large plains, covered with water to the depth of several feet. 
This is contiguous to Taquari, a place where the river is much con- 
fined. 

From this place it is twenty leagues to the resting-place of Allegre, 
in lat. 18° 12', and this space contains, on both banks of the Taquari, 
many entrances into the paths, which lead in time of the floods to va- 
rious distant places on the Paraguay, Porrudos, and Cuiaba. From this 
resting-place there are thirty leagues of navigation, on the course of the 
rivereast to thefall of Barra, whereitis impeded andunnavigable above 
a mile, though a part of it may be passed in half-loaded and partin empty 
canoes. At the head of this fall the river Cochim enters the Taquari, and 
the navigation here quits the latter for the Cochim. At its mouth it is 
twenty fathoms broad, and a league upwards receives on its south 
bank the Taquari-mirim, a river nearly as broad as itself. A little 
above this confluence is situated its first fall, which is called Da Ilha^ 

H R 



( 306: ) 



and may be passed in empty canoes. A league above is the fall of 
Giquitaya, passed with half cargoes, and a league and a quarter 
farther, that of the Choradeira, the current of which is very rapid. 
Beyond this is the fall of Avanhandava-uassu, where the cargoes 
are carried over-land for half a mile, and the canoes are conducted 
through a difficult channel of three fathoms, at the end of which 
they are pushed over the rocks in order to pass the head or cataract. 
Half a league above is the fall Do Jauru, so called from a river of 
that name, which enters the Cochim above it, on the north side. 
From this confluence upwards there occur seven falls in the course 
of five leagues and a half, in the midst of which distance the river 
cuts and is enchannelled in a mountain, through which it runs 
smoothly, although scarcely five fathoms broad, and receives on its. 
south side the stream of the Paredao, which is said to be auriferous. 
Half a league above the last of the seven falls before-mentioned are 
three successive ones, called Tres Irmaos, and at an equal distance 
above them, that of Das Furnas, which is passed laboriously with 
canoes unloaded. From this place the navigation continues on the 
Cochim through a succession of falls, until that river is joined by 
the Camapuao, eight yards in breadth at its mouth. From this 
point to its junction with the Taquari, the course of the Cochim is 
thirty leagues. 

The river Camapuao, along which the navigation is continued, be- 
comes narrower on passing some rivulets that flow into it, and so 
shallow, as to be in general scarcely two feet deep, and the canoes 
are rather dragged than navigated along its sandy bed. After two 
leagues of this labour, they quit the Camapuao-uassu, leaving it on 
the right hand, choked with fallen trees, &c, and enter into the Ca- 
mapuao-mirim, up which they proceed one league, when they reach 
the fazenda, or estate, of the same name. This is an important esta- 
blishment, belonging to the Portugueze, in the centre of those vast 
and desert regions that intervene between the great rivers Paraguay 



( 307 ) 



and Parana, ninety leagues south-south-west, in a direct line from 
the town of Cuiaba. The place seems very proper for a register, to 
prevent the smuggling of gold in this route, and to fix the duties on 
goods passing to Cuiaba and Matto Grosso. The canoes and cargoes 
are transported from the Fazenda de Camapuao by land about 
a mile to the river Sanguixuga, the principal source of the Rio 
Pardo. From the end of the land-passages the navigation continues 
down the Sanguixuga, and, in the interval of three leagues, they pass 
four falls to the Rio Vermel ho (so called from the colour of its 
waters), which enters the Pardo. Half a league from the mouth of 
the Vermelho the Pardo has the fall of the Pedras de Amolar, and a 
league below receives on its south side the river Claro, from which, 
after proceeding two leagues of level stream, there occur nine falls 
in the space of two leagues more. The passage of them occupies 
twelve or fourteen days in going up the river, though only one re- 
turning. Below the last of these, called the Bangue, the river Su- 
curiu enters the Pardo on its south side. Three leagues below the 
mouth of the Sucuriu is the cataract of Curare, about eight yards 
high, to avoid which the canoes are hauled over-land, through a pas- 
sage of a hundred yards. From this cataract, in the space of ten 
leagues, there occur ten falls, which occupy fifteen or twenty days, 
in ascending the river, though only one in descending. The breadth 
of the Rio Pardo in this part is twenty-two fathoms. Two leagues 
below the last of these falls is a deep inlet of three hundred and ninety 
fathoms; half a league lower the canoes are hauled over a space of land 
of a hundred and fifty yards. Half a league further is the fall of Sirga 
Negra; one league further, that of Sirga Matto; and a little more than 
a league from thence, the great cataract, or Salto da Cajuru, ten 
yards in height, to avoid which, the canoes are hauled through 
a narrow channel here formed by the river. At a distance equal to 
the preceding is the Cajuru-mirim, and immediately after is found 
the fall of Da Ilha, the thirty-third and last on this river. Six 
leagues below this fall, the Rio Pardo receives on its north side the 

r ,r 2 



( 308 ) 



river Orelha da Anta*; and four leagues lower down, on the same 
side, the Orelha da Onca*, from the mouth of which, after eleven 
leagues of navigation, is found the junction which the river Anhan- 
derj-uassu makes from the south with the Pardo, which, from the 
passage of Carnapuao to this point, completes a south-east course of 
forty-five leagues in extent. The Anhandery and the Pardo, from 
their confluence, run sixteen leagues of navigation westward, in one 
channel, and disembogue in the west bank of the Parana in lat. about 
21°. The velocity of the current of the Rio Pardo is very irregular: 
it may be navigated downward in five or six days, but cannot be 
ascended in less than twenty or thirty, and that by hauling, for the 
force of the stream in some places is too great for oars. 

The river Parana is of great breadth and weight of water, and is 
navigated against its current up to the mouth of the Tiete. In the 
first three leagues occurs the island of Manuel Homem. Five 
leagues above this island the Rio Verde falls into the Parana, by a 
mouth of forty-two fathoms, on its western bank, and at an equal 
distance above, on the opposite eastern side, the river Aguapehy 
enters, by a mouth apparently above twenty yards wide. Eight 
leagues above this river, and on the west side of the Parana, the large 
river Sucuriu has its mouth, at least fifty fathoms wide, and, after 
four leagues of navigation further, on the same side of the Parana, 
is found the mouth of the large and interesting river, the Tiete -f*. The 
distance between the rivers Tiete and Pardo, according to the wind- 
ings of the Parana, may be estimated at thirty-five leagues ; the di- 



* So called, because they abound with those animals. 

+ This river being the grand channel of communication from Rio de Janeiro, Santos, 
St. Paul's, and other places, to the interesting districts of Cuiaba, Matto Grosso, the whole 
of Paraguay, the river Plata, Potosi, Chiquisaca, and a great part of Peru, I have preserved 
the particular detail given in this paper, of its numerous falls, and the difficulties of its na- 
vigation, as it is now well known, and there is great reason to suppose, that it will soon be 
much more frequented. 



( 309 ) 



reetion north, inclining to the east. Passing up the Tiete, in the first 
three leagues is found the great Salto de Itapura (a great cascade), 
to avoid which, the canoes are dragged sixty fathoms over-land. A 
league above is the difficult fall of Itapura-mirim 3 another league 
upwards are the three falls, called Tres Irmaos, and little more than 
that distance onward, that of Itupiru, half a league long ; two leagues 
further is the fall of U-aicurituba-mirim, and in the upper part of it 
the small river Sucury enters the Tiet6 upon its north bank. One 
league above it is the fall of Utupiba, a quarter of a league in length. 
The same distance above is the fall of Araracangua-uassu, which is 
passed with unloaded canoes. Five leagues above this is found the 
Araracangua-mirim ; one league further, the Arassatuba, and at the 
same distance, the U-aicurituba, from which, in the space of nine 
leagues, occur seven falls. Three and a half leagues above the last 
of them is that of the Escaramunca, so called from the abrupt 
windings of the river among a thousand rocks and stoppages. Two 
leagues above this is the large fall of Avanhandava, where the canoes 
are unloaded, and their cargoes carried half a mile over-land *, and 
the canoes hauled the greatest part of the way, to avoid a cataract 
sixteen yards perpendicular. A league and a half above this is the 
fall of Avanhandava-mirim, and very near it, that of the Campo, 
from which there are fourteen leagues of clear navigation to those of 
the Camboyu-voca, and next to the Tambau-mirim and Uassu, both 
within the compass of two leagues. One league further is the fall 
of Tambitiririca ; three leagues from thence, the U-amicanga, and a 
little more than two leagues upwards, the Jacuripipira enters the 
Tiete on the north side, and has a mouth fifteen fathoms broad. A 



* The labour of dragging the canoes over-land to avoid the cataracts might be much les- 
sened (where the finest timber is in such abundance), if Government were to order rail-ways 
to be made, upon which loaded canoe? might easily be drawn on wheels. This would more 
facilitate the intercourse than any other measure, and, from the present enterprising spirit 
and wisdom of the Prince Regent's ministers, we may soon hope to see it put in practice. 



( 310 ) 



league and a half above this is the Jacuripipira-mirim, six leagues 
from whence is the fall of Congouha, a league in length. For the 
space of eight leagues from this there are six falls, of which the 
last is Banharem. From this it is three leagues and a half to the 
mouth of the Paraniaba, thirty eight fathoms broad : it enters the 
Tiete on the north ; and the latter river from this point immediately 
narrows itself to forty fathoms wide. From the mouth of the Pa- 
raniaba there is a navigation of four leagues to the small fall of Ilha, 
and fourteen leagues more, with frequent windings to that of Itahy, 
near a populous village, called Jundahy. Six leagues from this is 
the fall of Pedrenegoa, which is a quarter of a league long ; and 
half a league above it, the river Sorecaba, which comes from the 
town of the same name, in lat. 23° 31', empties itself on the south 
into the Tiete. Near this town are several mountains, called Gua« 
raceaba, some of which abound with rich oxide of iron, which, on 
smelting, has provedvery good. Upon them grows fine timber for ma- 
chinery, and wood of every size, fit for reducing into carbon. Numerous 
streams flow from them, which may be employed to great advantage, 
and their base is washed by the river Campanhes, near the Capivara, 
both of which empty themselves into the Tiete at a short distance. 
From the river Sorecaba it is only six leagues to Porto Felix, where 
all the embarkation is now made to Matto Grosso from St. Paul's, 
the distance being about twenty-three leagues from that city. 
Through this conveyance, salt, iron, ammunition, clothing for the 
troops, &c. are sent annually by Government. Trading parties fre-s 
quently arrive at St. Paul's from Cuiaba in the month of February, 
and return in April or May. 

Resuming our account of the Paraguay, it is to be observed that 
the Embotetieu enters that river five leagues below the mouth of the 
Taquari, and on the same side. It is now called Mondego, and was 
formerly navigated by the traders from St. Paul's, who entered by 
:the Anhandery-uassu, the south branch of the Pardo. On the north 
bank of the Mondego, twenty leagues above its mouth, the Spaniards 



( 311 0 



founded the city of Xerez, which the Paulistas destroyed. Ten 
leagues above this place, in the mountains that form the upper part 
of the Embotetieu, there is a tradition that there are rich mines 
which were discovered fifty years ago. One league below the mouth 
of the Mondego there are two high insulated mounts fronting each 
other on the Paraguay : at the extremity of the southern declivity of 
the mount on the west side, near the bank of the river, is the garri- 
son of New Coimbra, founded in 1775 ; it is the last and souther- 
most Portugueze establishment on the great Paraguay. Eleven 
leagues to the south of Coimbra, on the west side of the Paraguay, 
is the mouth of Bahia Negra, a large sheet of water of six leagues 
in extent, being five leagues long from north to south : it receives 
the waters of the wide-flooded plains and lands to the south and 
west of the mountains of Albuquerque. At this bay the Portu- 
gueze possessions on both banks of the Paraguay terminate. From 
thence the river continues to lat. -21°, where, on its west bank, is 
situated a hill known to the Portugueze by the name of Miguel Jose, 
crowned with a Spanish fort with four pieces of artillery, called 
Bourbon. Three leagues above this the little river Guirino falls into 
the Paraguay on the east side. Nine leagues to the south of the 
above fort, and in lat. 21° 22', are other mountains on both sides the 
Paraguay, which command this river ; for the eastern side is sur- 
mounted with a lofty chain extending to the interior of the country, 
near which is the sugar-loaf mount ; the opposite side is equally 
mountainous, but not so high or extensive ; and in the middle of the 
river there is a high rocky island, which, with the mountainous banks 
on each side, forms two channels of about a musket-shot across. 
This, in case of war between the neighbouring nations, would be a 
post of the highest importance, as it forms a natural barrier, which 
would require little fortification to render it an effectual obstacle to 
invasion. Here terminate those extensive inundations, to which both 
banks of the Paraguay are subject : they commence at the mouth of 
the Jauru, and to this point cover an extent of 100 leagues from 



( 312 ) 

north to south, and forty in breadth, at their highest floods, form- 
ing an apparent lake, which geographers of former days, as well as 
some moderns, have termed the Xarayes. This inundation con- 
founds the channel of the great Paraguay with those of its various 
confluents, in such a manner that, from twenty to thirty leagues 
above their regular mouths, it is possible, in time of the floods, to 
navigate across from one to the other, always in deep water, without 
ever seeing or approaching the banks of the Paraguay. During this 
wonderful inundation, the high mountains and elevated land which 
it incloses appear like so many superb islands, and the lower grounds 
form a labyrinth of lakes, bays, and pools, many of which remain after 
the floods have subsided. From the intricacy of these inundated 
plains, the navigation is rendered impracticable to all who do not 
unite experience with skill. From this position, (the only barrier on 
the Paraguay,) the banks downward are in general high and firm, 
particularly the eastern or Portugueze side. In lat. 22° 5', a consi- 
derable river empties itself into it, which the Spaniards, at the de- 
marcation in 1753, would have to be the Corrientes, whereas the 
heads of this river are twenty leagues north of the real Corrientes 
mentioned in the treaty. 

Between the Paraguay and the Parana there runs from north to 
south an extensive chain of mountains, which have the appellation 
of Amanbay ; they terminate to the south of the river Iguatimy, 
forming a ridge running east and west, called Maracayer. From 
these mountains spring all the rivers which, from the Taquari south- 
ward, enter the Paraguay, and from the same chain, also, proceed 
many other rivers, which, taking a contrary direction, flow into the 
Parana, one of them, and the most southerly, being the Igoatimy, 
which has its mouth in lat. 23° 47 \ a little above the seven falls, or 
the wonderful cataract of the Parana. This cataract is a most sub- 
lime spectacle, being distinguished to the eye of the spectator from 
below by the appearance of* six rainbows, and emitting from its fall 
a constant cloud of vapours, which impregnates the air to a great 

9 



( 313 ) 



distance. On the north side of the Igoatimy, twenty leagues from 
its mouth, the Portugueze had formerly the fortress of Bauris, which 
was abandoned in 1777- The Igoatimy has its sources ten leagues 
above this place, among high and rugged mountains. The river 
Xexuy enters the Paraguay on the east side in lat. 24° 11', twenty 
leagues below the Ipane, another small river, called the Ipane-mirim, 
intervening. 

This is a summary description of Portugueze Paraguaj r , to the 
point where the territory ought (as our Tourist observes) to extend ; 
and such is the situation of this great river, that the above-mentioned 
rivers which concentrate toward the interior of Brazil enter it on the 
eastern side ; not one enters it on the western, from the Jauru to the 
parallel of the Ipane. Many parts of the banks of all those rivers 
are laid under water at the time of the floods, and the plains are 
covered to a considerable depth. 

A river of such vast size as the Paraguay, in a temperate and sa- 
lubrious climate, abounding with fish, bordered by extensive plains 
and high mountains, intersected by so many rivers, bays, lakes, and 
forests, must naturally have drawn many of the Indian nations to in- 
habit its banks : but, immediately after the discovery of the new con- 
tinent, the incursions of the Paulistas and Spaniards seem to have dis- 
persed and destroyed the numerous tribes : the Jesuits transplanted 
many thousands to their settlements on the Uraguay and Parana. 
Other nations fled from the avarice of the new settlers to countries 
less favoured, but more secure by reason of their distance, and the 
difficulty of approach. This emigration of one nation to districts 
occupied by another, became the fruitful source of inveterate and 
sanguinary wars among them, which tended to reduce their num- 
bers. There are, however, still some Indians left on the borders of 
the Paraguay, among whom the Guaycurus, or Cavalier Indians, are 
principally distinguished for valour. They occupy the lands from 
the riverTaquari, extending southwards, along all the rivers that enter 
the Paraguay on the eastern side, as far as the river Ipane, and in 

s s 



( 314 ) 



like manner, on theopposite bank, from themountains ofAlbuquerque 
downwards. They have made war repeatedly on the Spaniards 
and Portugueze, without ever being subdued. They are armed with 
lances of extraordinary length, bows, arrows, &c. They make long 
incursions on horseback into the neighbouring territories; they pro- 
cure horses in exchange for . stout cotton cloaks, called Ponchos, 
which they manufacture. There are other Indian nations inhabiting 
these large tracts, some of whom have intermixed both with the Por- 
tugueze and Spaniards, there being few of the latter on any part of 
the confines without some traces of Indian physiognomy. 

From the river Xexuy, downwards, the Paraguay takes its general 
course southwards for thirty-two leagues to the city of Assumpcion, 
the capital of Paraguay, and the residence of its governor. This city 
is situated on an obtuse angle made by the eastern bank of the river ; 
the population is by no means trifling, and there are some Portu- 
gueze among the inhabitants. The government is of vast extent, 
and its total population is said to amount to near 120,000 souls. 
The land is fertile, and contains many rich farms : its principal pro- 
duct is the matte, which is exported to Tucuman and Buenos Ayres, 
from whence it is sent to various parts of the Spanish dominions, 
along the coast of Chili and Peru, being a general article of consump- 
tion among all ranks of people. Its other products are hides, to- 
bacco, and sugar. From Buenos Ayres large boats arrive at the 
city of Assumpcion, after two or three months' passage ; the only 
difficulty in navigating is the great weight of the waters of the Pa- 
raguay, which flow with great rapidity: but this disadvantage is 
lessened by favourable winds, which blow the greater part of the 
year from the south. 

Six leagues below Assumpcion, on the western side of the Para- 
guay, the river Pilcomayo enters that river by its first mouth ; its 
second is fourteen or sixteen leagues lower. In this space some 
other smaller rivers enter on the eastern side, and amongst them the 
Tibiquari, on an arm of which, twenty leagues south-east from As- 



( 315 ) 

sumpcion, is Villa Rica, a large Spanish town, with much property 
in cattle on its extensive plains. The river Vermelho enters the 
west side of the Paraguay in lat. 26° 50' : on a remote upper branch 
of this river is the town of Salto, near an accessible fall ; it is an im- 
portant point to the Spaniards, who are transporting their goods from 
Buenos Ayres, Tucuman, &c. to Upper Peru. 

The River Parana, 
or Great River, which the first discoverers considered as the chief, 
on account of its abundant waters, unites with the eastern side 
of the Paraguay in lat. 27° 25', and their united streams take the 
name of the Rio de la Plata, which originated in the following 
circumstance: — Martim de Sousa, the first donatary of the capi- 
tania of St. Vicente, furnished Alexo Garcia with an adequate 
escort to explore the hitherto untrodden wilds to the west of the 
extensive coast of Brazil. This intrepid Portugueze, by the route 
of the Tiete, reached the Paraguay, which he crossed, and pene- 
trated considerably into the interior, from whence he returned, it 
is said, loaded with silver, and some gold : but he halted on the 
Paraguay, and waited for the coming of his son, a youth of ten- 
der years, with some of his people, whilst he sent forward an 
account of the discovery. He was surprised by a body of In- 
dians, who killed him, took his son prisoner, and carried off all 
his riches : the year following, sixty Portugueze, who were sent 
in search of Garcia, shared the same fate. The Spaniards who 
first settled on this river, seeing so much silver amongst these 
Indians, and supposing it to be the produce of the country, called 
the river La Plata. 

The Parana derives its principal sources from the west side of 
the mountains of Mantiqueira, twenty-five leagues west of the town 
of Paraty. 



s s 2 



( 316 ) 



CHAP. XIX. 



Account of the Capitania of Rio Grande. 



HE capitania of Rio Grande is one of the most important in 



Brazil. It is of considerable extent, and is bounded by the 
capitania of St. Paul's on the north, Matto Grosso on the west, and 
and by the Spanish territories, between it and the Rio de la Plata, 
on the south. 

Its port is situated about 32° south ; it is dangerous to enter, first 
from its being shoal water, and next, from a violent sea always run- 
ning, and from the shifting of the sands. Notwithstanding these in- 
conveniences, there is a great trade carried on from this place to all 
the ports of Brazil, in brigs and small vessels that do not draw above 
ten feet water. After passing the bar, which is long, they enter into 
an inland sea, or lagoon, of deep water, and navigate to the north 
and west to its head, where the principal river runs into it. To the 
southward is the lagoon Meni, and the neutral ground, a little to the 
southward of which is the Spanish fortress of Santa Teresa, lately 
put in repair. 

The principal town is defended by many forts, some of which are 
upon islets. Since it was taken from the Spaniards by General 
Coimbra, the Portugueze have much strengthened it, and now there 
is a very considerable force of cavalry, horse-artillery, and foot-sol- 
diers ; so that at a short notice, with the addition of the militia, a 
body of five or seven thousand men might be calculated upon. 

The climate is considered very fine, and the soil so productive, that 
this district may be called the granary of Brazil : the wheat grown 




( 317 ) 



here is shipped to all the ports on the coast where bread is used. 
Farming, however, is carried on in so slovenly a manner, that the 
grain is always rough, bad skinned, and extremely foul. It is packed 
in raw hides, which are sewed up like sacks : it swells, and heats fre- 
quently on the passage from Rio Grande to the more northerly ports ; 
and often, after landing in Rio de Janeiro, it is left on the quay ex- 
posed for days to the rain. 

The vicinity of Rio Grande is extremely populous ; in a circuit of 
twenty leagues, the inhabitants, including the troops, are estimated 
at 100,000. Their principal occupations are, the breeding of cattle, 
for which the immense tract of pasture-land is so well calculated ; 
the drying and preparing of hides, and the making of charque, or. 
what is called, in the river Plata, jug-beef. It is prepared in the fol- 
lowing manner : — After the ox is skinned, the flesh is stripped from 
the bones in as large flakes as possible, in some degree resembling 
sides of bacon: it is put into hot brine, where it remains from twelve 
to forty hours, according to the thickness. It is then taken out, 
drained, and dried in the sun, afterwards made up into packages that 
weigh about 150lbs., and shipped from this port to all parts of 
Brazil. It is a general article' of consumption among the lower 
classes and negroes, and is not unfrequently seen at respectable 
tables, being in taste somewhat similar to hung. beef. It constitutes 
the general food for the sailors, and forms part of almost every 
cargo sent out from this port. It has found its way to the West 
Indies, where it is in great request, and has been frequently sold, 
during the war, at nine-pence or a shilling per pound. The charque 
prepared at Rio Grande is much superior to that brought from the 
river Plata. During the time that the English troops were in pos- 
session of Monte Video, in consequence of an apprehension that 
the cattle might be driven away, and they be in want of supplies, 
large quantities were contracted for at St. Pedro, which arrived at 
Monte Video, though not wanted. They were afterwards shipped 
for the West India market. 



( 318 ) 



The quantity of hides exported from hence is almost incredible t 
they furnish many vessels with entire cargoes, which are carried to 
the northern ports, and from thence embarked for Europe. The 
annual average may be estimated at not less than three hundred 
thousand. 

Tallow forms another considerable article of commerce, which in 
general is shipped in the crude state, and not refined, as in the river 
Plata. The greater part is consumed in Brazil, and the dealers find 
it preferable to refine the article on the spot, where they manufacture 
it into candles. It is packed in waste raw-hide packages*. 

Horns and horse-hair form an inferior branch of the commerce, 
and are shipped from this port in great quantities. 

The above are the staple productions of Rio Grande, which give 
employment to perhaps a hundred sail of coasters, some of which 
make two or three voyages in a year, carrying thither rum, sugar, 
tobacco, cotton, rice, mandioca, sweet-meeats, &c.-f 

Of European merchandise, they bring wine, oil, olives, glass, and a 
great variety of English commodities, particularly iron, (though they 
much prefer the Swedish,) baizes, coatings, stout woollen cloths, 
Manchester velverets of various qualities and colours, printed cot- 
tons, calicoes, muslins, handkerchiefs, silk, cotton, and worsted 
hosiery, hats, flannels, &c. 

Sail-cloth, cordage, anchors, tar, paints, fowling-pieces, ammuni- 
tion of all sorts, hardware of every description, particularly slaugh- 
ter-knives, some plated ware, and fancy articles. A great part of 



* Some English settlers, disappointed in the river Plata, went to Rio Grande to establish 
concerns for curing beef, refining tallow, &c, which they soon found it necessary to aban- 
don. 

f Almost every vessel brings a greater or smaller number of negroes, it being the practice 
at Rio de Janeiro to ship off all those who are ill-disposed and troublesome for Rio Grande, 
whence, if they continue refractory, they are frequently sold into the neighbouring colony. 



( 319 ) 



the goods are conveyed upon horses into the interior, where they are 
carried from house to house for sale or exchange. 

During the old system, so lately as within these four years, a most 
lucrative trade was here carried on with the Spaniards, who came in 
numbers, and most eagerly bought up the tobacco, and such of the 
English manufactures as could be transported on horse-back, at 
great prices. Thus Rio Grande and its vicinity became very en- 
viable situations, where considerable fortunes were made in a little 
time, as the goods bought were much in request, though contraband, 
and were paid for in specie. This trade, so advantageous to each 
party, is now entirely ruined through the eagerness of our specu- 
lators in over-stocking the markets, and selling for two what would 
have been eagerly bought for six. 

The neighbourhood of the capital is an unpleasant place, being 
surrounded with sand and sand-hills of no inconsiderable size, formed 
by the wind blowing the sand in heaps in various directions, which 
become half indurated, and appear stratified. The excessively high 
winds which frequently prevail blow the sand so as to be very dis- 
agreeable, as it enters every part of the house. 

The cattle bred in this capitania are very numerous, and large 
herds are brought hither from the Spanish frontiers. 

The large river Uruguay rises in this capitania, and empties 
itself into the river Plata, a little above Buenos Ayres : there are 
numerous others of less consequence, the banks of which are well 
stored with wood. Some attempts were lately made, by miners sent 
from Villa Rica, to work gold- washings. In the neighbourhood of 
the capital they have coal, a specimen of which I have seen. From 
the same district, a gentleman shewed me a substance which he 
could not define ; on seeing it, I asked him if he was certain that it 
came from thence ; he assured me that he was : I then told him it 
was wolfram ; and stated that this metal strongly indicated tin, of 
which it is frequently an attendant in Europe, though probably it 
may not be so in America or Asia. It was amorphous, not rounded 



( 320 ) 



by friction, and weighed at least a pound. Of the geology of this 
capitania very little is known. 

In various parts jaguars, and other beasts of prey, are very com- 
mon. Among the granivorous animals are capivaras of great size, 
deer in great numbers, and armadillos, which afford excellent eating 
when roasted. Of birds, there are ostriches of the dark-coloured 
species, which go about in flocks in great numbers. There are 
eagles, hawks, and other birds of prey, particularly a species of 
crow of the vulture kind. Cranes, storks, wild turkeys, ducks, par- 
tridges, horned plovers, goat-suckers, horned owls, small parrots, car- 
dinals, humming birds, &c. are found in great numbers. 

The inhabitants are, generally speaking, athletic and robust, arid 
so extremely fond of riding, as not to go the smallest distance on 
foot. They are esteemed excellent horsemen, and greatly surpass 
their neighbours in dexterity and agility, particularly in catching 
cattle with the balls and the lazo. But it ought to be understood 
that the Spaniards have Peons on their farms, who are more nearly 
allied to the Indians than to them, whereas the Portugueze have 
Creolians, bred up to the business, or expert negroes, who are inferior 
to none in this labour. 

It is singular to Europeans, that in this fine climate, where the 
thermometer is frequently below 40° Fahrenheit, and where are bred 
as fine cows as any in the world, and every convenience is at hand 
for dairies, neither butter nor cheese is made, except on particular 
occasions ; nor is milk even for coffee to be procured at all times. 
It may probably be urged that the production of these articles would 
not answer the purpose of the farmers : but certainly it might be 
made to do so ; and I hesitate not to say, that a hundred cows, kept 
for dairy purposes, would yield to any man capable of rearing, train- 
ing, and managing them, a greater profit than any other part of hus- 
bandry. This colony might easily be made to supply the neigh- 
bouring districts, and even the whole of Brazil, with these articles, 

9 



( 321 ) 



A number of years ago some hemp was grown here by order of 
Government : it proved excellent, but was abandoned because it 
was troublesome to dress, and probably did not yield sufficient 
profit. 

In some places grapes are very good, and probably wine will soon 
be made from them, as the restraint laid by the mother-country upon 
her colonies is now removed. 

For the last two or three years, troops have been continually sent 
to Rio Grande, where they soon become disciplined, and are ready 
for an} r expedition, should hostilities commence with their neigh* 
bours. Perhaps in no place could an army be maintained at less 
expence ; their cavalry stands in the highest reputation, and their 
flying-artillery is said to be equal to any in Europe ; nor is this im- 
probable, when we consider the excellence of their horses, and the 
discipline the troops have undergone ever since they left St. Paul's. 



T T 



( 322 ) 



CHAP. XX. 

General Observations on the Trade from England to Brazil. 

TTAVING, in a preceding part of this work, stated the importance 
of Rio de Janeiro as a port which, from its locality, appears 
destined by nature to become the metropolis of a vast empire, and 
the centre of an extensive commerce, it may not be improper in this 
place to treat more at large on this interesting subject. 
; The ships best calculated for trade from England are those which 
carry about four hundred tons, and sail well : it is particularly neces- 
sary that they should have the latter quality ; for, if they have not, 
the voyage from thence to England is frequently rendered very 
tedious by their being driven so far to the westward by the north-east 
trade-wind. Owing to this circumstance, it is not uncommon for a 
packet, or fast-sailing ship, to make a passage from the coast of 
Brazil to England in five or six weeks, when a heavy-sailing vessel 
is double that time in arriving at her destination. The best season 
for sailing from England, and that which affords the greatest proba- 
bility of making a short passage, is the month of February or March, 
because then the north-east winds prevail. I should advise crossing 
the line in not less than 22°, nor more than 25 9 west longitude, if 
the destination be the Plata or Rio de Janeiro, as I have twice ex- 
perienced very heavy calms in crossing the line between ]9° and 20 9 . 
Ships bound to Bahia, Pernambuco, and ports more northerly, will 
of course cross the line more to the westward, as they will have 
nothing to fear : but the south-west trade- wind would generally 
cause ships going farther south to fall in with the land too soon. 
Should that be the case, I would advise them, if they make the land 

9 



( 323 ) 



to the north of the Alboroxos*, to keep in-shore, as the land-breeze 
frequently blows along-shore until mid-day. The ports on this coast 
are in general good and secure, nevertheless it is highly desirable to 
be provided with good anchors and cables, particularly in the Rio de 
la Plata. In the Portugueze territories the port-charges are not so 
expensive as formerly ; a dollar per day is exacted for anchorage, 
which forms the principal charge. I particularly recommend that 
all homeward-bound ships should lay in a. sufficiency of necessary 
stores, especially of water, so as to make the passage without being 
obliged to go into the Western Isles, as there the port-charges and 
attendant expences are very exorbitant, though the only articles 
wanted are a few casks of water, and a hundred weight or two of 
bread. 

For loading vessels, peculiar boats, so frequently used in the West 
Indies, are by no means wanted in these ports, though good boats 
are always absolutely necessary. Ships are loaded in Rio de Ja- 
neiro, and other ports of Brazil, as. well as in the Plata, by lighters, 
which are very expensive, and difficult to be procured when many 
ships are loading. 

When a vessel enters any of the ports, the health-boat and custom- 
boat make a visit before she anchors, and their report is immediately 
made ; after which, proper officers, called guards, are sent on board. 
These men in general are not very liberally provided for ; they are 
extremely civil and accommodating, and ought to be treated with 
respect. Since the establishment of the treaty of commerce between 
this government and that of Brazil, the contraband trade has been 
almost done away ; for the duties are now much reduced, and the 
accommodation which the judge and subordinate officers of the cus- 



. * It has been found, however, from modern surveys, that those rocks are by no means so 
dangerous as they have been represented. 

T T 2 



( 324 ) 



tom-house are disposed to allow is such, as to render that nefarious 
practice unnecessary. 

It may not be improper in this place to describe the consequences 
produced in Rio de Janeiro by the 'excessive commercial specular 
tions into which our merchants entered, immediately after the emi- 
gration of the Court of Portugal, and which could only be equalled 
by those which followed our expeditions to the Rio de la Plata. 

Owing to the incredible competition or struggle among our mer- 
chants, who should send most ships and cargoes to a country, whose 
civilized population, exclusive of slaves, does not exceed eight hun- 
dred thousand souls, (one-third, at least, of whom may be said to 
make use only of what their land produces,) it is natural to suppose 
that the market would be almost instantly overstocked. So great 
and so unexpected was the influx of English manufactures into Rio 
de Janeiro, within a few days after the arrival of the Prince, that 
the rent of houses to put them into became enormously dear. The 
bay was covered with ships, and the custom-house soon overflowed 
with goods : even salt, casks of ironmongery, and nails, salt-fish, 
hogsheads of cheese, hats, together with an immense quantity of 
crates and hogsheads of earthen and glass ware, cordage, bottled and 
barrelled porter, paints, gums, resin, tar, &c. were exposed, not only 
to the sun and rain, but to general depredation. The inhabitants of 
Rio de Janeiro, and more particularly some of the Creolians and 
strangers from the interior, thought that these goods were placed 
there for their benefit, and extolled the goodness and generosity of 
the English, who strewed the beach to a great extent with articles 
for which their own countrymen had heretofore charged them such 
high prices. It is true that the gentlemen entrusted with these va- 
luable consignments did apply for centinels to be placed to guard 
the articles thus exposed, and their request was immediately com- 
plied with. The result was such as might easily have been antici- 
pated from such watchmen, many of whom did not fail to profit 
largely by the appointment. In the course of several weeks the 



( 325 ) 



beach began to assume a less crowded appearance ; some few of the 
goods were taken to the residence of their owners, others were re- 
moved ; but to what place, or by whom, there was no way of ascer- 
taining ; and a very great proportion was sold at the custom-house 
for the benefit of the underwriters. This stratagem, so frequently 
practised, (and certainly deserving of the severest reprehension,) af- 
terwards operated as a very serious injury to the regular sale of arti- 
cles ; for, as the market was so overstocked, scarcely any one would 
offer money for goods, except at the custom-house sales. As the de- 
preciation continued, numberless packages were there exposed for 
sale, in part damaged, or apparently so. Indeed, little more than 
the mark of a cord on the outside of a single article, or a corner 
discoloured, in a package however large, was a sufficient pretext for 
presuming and pronouncing the whole to be damaged. By means 
of this sentence, so easily obtained, great quantities of goods were 
brought to the hammer in the custom-house warehouses, under every 
disadvantage ; thus the owners recovered the amount insured for, 
and the insurers lost the difference between that sum and the price 
they were sold at, also the attendant expences. Many of the under- 
writers will, no doubt, retain a lasting remembrance of the sales 
which took place at Rio de Janeiro, and other parts of South Ame- 
rica, for their benefit. 

To the serious losses thus occasioned by an overstocked market, 
and by the sacrifice of goods at whatever price could be obtained, 
may be added another, which originated in the ignorance of many 
persons who sent out articles to a considerable amount not at all 
suited to the country ; one speculator, of wonderful foresight, sent 
large invoices of stays for ladies, who never heard of such armour ; 
another sent skates, for the use of a people who are totally unin- 
formed that water can become ice ; a third sent out a considerable 
assortment of the most elegant coffin-furniture, not knowing that 
coffins are never used by the Brazilians, or in the Plata. To these 
absurd speculations may be added numerous others, particularly in 



( 32tf ) 



articles of taste : elegant services of cut glass were little appreciated 
by men accustomed to drink out of a horn or a cocoa-nut-shell ; and 
brilliant chandeliers were still less valued in a country where only 
lamps that afforded a gloomy light were used. Superfine woollen 
cloths were equally ill-suited to the market ; no one thought them 
sufficiently strong. An immense quantity of high-priced saddles, 
and thousands of whips*, were sent out to a people as incapable of 
adopting them as they were of knowing their convenience. They were 
astonished to see Englishmen ride on such saddles ; nor could they 
imagine any thing more insecure. Of the bridles scarcely any use 
could be made, as the bit was not calculated to keep the horse or 
mule in subordination: these articles were of course sacrificed. 
Great quantities of the nails and ironmongery were useless, as they 
were not calculated for the general purposes of the people. Large 
cargoes of Manchester goods were sent ; and, in a few months, more 
arrived than had been consumed in the course of twenty years pre- 
ceding. No discrimination was used in the assortment of these arti- 
cles, with respect either to quality or fineness, so that common prints 
were disposed of at less than a shilling a yard, and frequently in bar- 
ter. Fish from Newfoundland met with a similar fate ; also porter, 
large quantities of which, in barrels, arrived among a people, of 
whom a few only had tasted that article as a luxury. How the ship- 
pers in London, and other British ports, could imagine that porter 
would at once become a general beverage, it is difficult to conceive, 
especially when sent in barrels. These cargoes, being unsaleable, 
Avere of course warehoused, and of course spoiled. Newfoundland 
fish, that was generally sold at from twelve to twenty dollars per 
quintal, was now unsaleable at four, and in many instances did not 
pay warehouse-room. Earthenware was perhaps rather more fa- 
vourably received than many of the former articles, for plates, &c. 



In Brazil the bridle is made of sufficient length to serve the purpose of a whip. 



( 327 ) 



soon came into general use. Having enumerated various commodi- 
ties which suffered a general depreciation, it may be sufficient to add 
that many invoices of fancy goods, and such as do not constitute a 
staple trade, were sold at from sixty to seventy per cent, under costs 
and charges, and others were totally lost. To enter more into detail 
would be unnecessary : it is hoped that the trade will in time find its 
regular course, and that the adventurers will derive from it some 
compensation for their former losses, though no possible change can 
repair the total ruin which numbers have incurred. Experience will 
now have fully shewn the fallacy of those golden hopes which some 
persons conceived from the reputed wealth of South. America, and 
we shall no longer hear of those absurdities which characterised the 
first commercial speculations to the river Plata. What must have 
been the delusions of those traders who sent out tools, formed with 
a hatchet on one side and a hammer on the other, for the convenient 
cy of breaking the rocks, and cutting the precious metals from them, 
as if they imagined that a man had only to go into the mountains, 
and cut as much gold as would pay for the articles he wanted ! 

Other evils resulted from these ill-judged and excessive specula- 
tions to South America, which might naturally have been antici- 
pated. The first was, that the produce was bought up with such 
avidity that many articles were soon double their ordinary value, and 
continued to rise as our manufactures lowered. But this was not 
all : the purchasers suffered equally from their ignorance of the qua- 
lity of the articles, as from their eagerness in purchasing them. For 
instance; any kind of sebaceous matter Avas greedily bought for tal- 
low ; and numberless hides, spoiled in the drying and eaten by the 
grub, met with ready sale. Little attention was paid to the state 
they were in ; and thus it frequently happened that lots and cargoes 
of those articles, instead of reimbursing the adventurer to whom they 
were consigned, scarcely paid freight and charges, This was also the 
case with coffee and other staple articles. Many gentlemen, more 
knowing than others, sent home lets of curious wood, and even en- 



( 328 ) 



tered into the illicit trade of shipping the dye-wood, which generally 
proved very disadvantageous, as the wood of that species grown in 
the vicinity of Rio de Janeiro is very inferior in quality to that of 
Pernambuco, from whence that trade is allowed by contract. The 
folly of speculation did not stop here : precious stones appeared to 
offer the most abundant source of riches ; the general calculation was 
made upon the price at which they sold in London : but every 
trader bought them, more or less, at the price at which they were 
offered ; invoices of goods were bartered for some, which in London 
would sell for, comparatively, a trifle, as they were taken without disr 
crimination as to quality or perfection ; tourmalines were sold for 
emeralds, crystals for topazes, and both common stones and vitreous 
paste have been bought as diamonds to a considerable amount. 
Both gold and diamonds were well known to be produced in Brazil; 
and their being by law contraband, was a sufficient temptation to 
eager speculators who had never before seen either in their native 
state. False diamonds were weighed with scrupulousness, and 
bought with avidity, to sell by the rules stated by Jefferies. Gold T 
dust, as it is commonly called, appeared in no inconsiderable quan- 
tity, and, after being weighed with equal exactness, was bought or 
bartered for. But previous to this many samples underwent the fol- 
lowing easy and ingenious process : — The brass pans purchased of 
the English were filed, and mixed with the gold in the proportion of 
from five to ten per cent., according to the opinion which the seller 
formed of the sagacity of the person with whom he had to deal : and 
thus, by a simple contrivance, some of our countrymen repurchased 
at three or four guineas per ounce the very article which they had 
before sold at 2s. 6d. per pound. 

In enumerating the losses occasioned by the depreciation of goods, 
I have omitted to notice the heavy expences upon them after the 
purchase, as packing, shipping, convoy-duty, freight, insurance, 
commission, and other incidental charges. Then suppose any staple 
article to be bought ; there are the expences of commission for 



( 329 ) 



buying, of warehouse-room, shipping and the attendant fees, freight, 
and insurance; and, on the arrival of the merchandize in England, 
there are duties, dockage, warehouse-room, and many other items 
which leave no small interest in the hands of those who do the 
business. 

It is scarcely possible to imagine, much less to describe, the dis- 
appointment which prevailed among mercantile gentlemen a few 
months after their arrival in South America, particularly among 
those who had orders not to sell the goods entrusted to them lower 
than the prices specified. 

Their sanguine expectations of incalculable heaps or bars of gold 
speedily vanished ; many persons came to look at their stores, 
but few offered to buy ; and, incredible as it may appear, yet it is 
true, that when goods were offered to them at half the original 
cost, they invariably exclaimed, " Very dear." Scenes of this 
kind I have repeatedly witnessed, and could scarcely suppress my 
indignation at seeing goods thus depreciated, which a few months 
before were so eagerly sought after. Gentlemen consignees so 
situated were at a loss how to act : the duties, rents, charges, and 
other expences were high, and must peremptorily be paid ; their 
only resource was to open a shop or room for the purpose of selling 
their goods by retail. 

These gentlemen had calculated upon doing business only in the 
large way, similar to our first mercantile houses : they had set apart 
their hours for horse-exercise, and for going to their country-seats*. 
The idea of vending by retail was a bitter which destroyed all their 
pleasing anticipations of doing business in style : they came out as 
merchants, and could not stoop to be shopkeepers ; and many of 
them, rather than yield to that degradation, sent goods to auctions. 



* Delicate connections were soon formed, and females of the obscurest class appeared 
dressed in the most costly extreme of English fashion. 

U U 



( 330 ) 



Others with more prudence accommodated themselves to circum- 
stances, and were not offended at being asked for a pair of boots or 
a hat. These persons reaped all the advantage of the trade, as they 
got their price by selling to those whose necessities prompted them 
to purchase, and were ever ready to sell by the package when op- 
portunity offered. Many of these gentlemen, it is true, have been 
much blamed by the consignors, who have expressed great dissatis- 
faction at their proceedings, both in the disposal of the property 
sent to them, and in purchase of merchandise to return ; these com- 
plaints were, perhaps, in some degree founded in reason, though 
much may be said in extenuation of the former, not only on the 
ground of their want of experience, but the unexampled situation of 
affairs ; for a respectable and confidential clerk, however capable of 
copying an invoice, going to Lloyd's, or casting up a page in a led- 
ger, must make a very poor figure as a tradesman, being very inca- 
pable of ascertaining or stating the merits of manufactured goods, 
and still less qualified to purchase the staple articles and general 
produce of the county. These severe and grievous disadvantages 
frequently gave the Brazilians the double advantage of buying below 
the market-price, and of selling above it. 

From these and many other unfortunate and disastrous circum- 
stances, the trade could not fail to become gradually worse and 
worse ; hence it is very natural to imagine that necessitous con- 
signors, eager to see the gold which they had so long and so vainly 
anticipated, became pressing for remittances. One disappointment 
succeeded another ; remonstrances were made ; and powers of at- 
torney were at length sent out almost by cargoes ; property was re- 
moved from one consignee to another, at great ex pence, but to no 
purpose. At home the greatest confusion prevailed for want of 
money, until that lamentable and unfortunate epoch, when the 
columns of the Gazette were filled with ihe names of those very 
respectable merchants, who, before those ruinous speculations, were 
in a state of affluence. 



( 331 ) 



Misunderstandings frequently arose between the English and the 
Portugueze, either in making contracts, or in not complying with 
them ; and they were continually prosecuting each other for injuries 
which both parties professed to have sustained. These litigations 
might have terminated very expensively, if not otherwise seriously, 
had not the wise measures of the Judge Conservador, approved by 
His Excellency Lord Strangford, prevented the perplexities of legal 
proceedings. The appeals of the English were always heard ; they 
were strangers whom His Royal Highness protected, and they ever 
found in the Conde de Linhares a firm and powerful friend, and in 
the British Ambassador a wise and prudent supporter of their claims. 
They were allowed peculiar privileges, similar to those enjoyed by 
the nobles in Portugal : they could also claim the possession of houses 
inhabited by useless families ; their rents could not be raised ; and, 
in case of embarrassment in their affairs, an appeal to the Prince 
procured them a term of ten years, during which their creditors could 
not molest them. These and many other acts of favour toward the 
English certainly excited the jealousy of the resident Portugueze, 
who frequently exclaimed, that to live in Brazil it was necessary to 
become an Englishman. 

Had it been possible to bring the whole trade to Brazil under one 
interest, many of these fatal consequences might have been pre- 
vented. It should have been under the control and direction of ex- 
perienced merchants, who would have sent out such articles as were 
known to be wanted, and whose agents would have been actively 
employed in obtaining intelligence respecting the population of the 
country, its produce, and its consumption, particularly in goods of 
English manufacture. Interest would naturally prompt them to 
order and buy all that the country required, and return to this coun- 
try those articles which were most likely to answer the general demand. 

If the trade had been properly conducted, we should have received 
for a fifth of the produce which has been sold the same amount 
which has been paid for the whole, and it is certain that the pur- 

v v 2 



( 332 ) 



chasers would have been better satisfied ; for, to vend goods at a rea- 
sonable price is the certain way to keep the demand steady, but to 
force them upon the consumer, whether he wants them or not, is to 
render what was once a luxury so common as to become contemptible. 

In the Plata, the monied men bought very largely of the cargoes 
which first arrived, and were afterwards considerable losers by the 
overflow which took place, when men of less capital bought for ten 
thousand dollars, what a few weeks before sold for fifteen or twenty. 
In Rio de Janeiro the case was somewhat different ; for the monied 
men thought the English manufactures inexhaustible, and therefore 
kept back their gold, leaving the trade principally to men of a se- 
condary class, who bought with great caution, and sold very promptly, 
for fear of a further depreciation. 

Having stated the ruinous consequences of sending out goods not 
saleable, it may be proper to point out the articles in general con- 
sumption, though even these may be sold at great loss if the markets 
be overstocked, for trade must depend on the wants and necessities 
of the consumer. If a person possesses seven or eight hats, as many 
coats, &c. it is unreasonable to suppose that he can want more, 
though he may be tempted to purchase, if offered at very reduced 
prices : but even that must have an end, and a trade must soon ex- 
pire where one party is constantly the loser. This has been too ge- 
nerally the result of our late speculations in South America, into 
which people hurried without calculation or foresight. 

Iron and steel are articles for which there is a general and constant 
demand. The smiths prefer Swedish iron, as they have been always 
accustomed to it, and do not know how to heat and work the Eng- 
lish. The next article to be mentioned is salt, in which the Brazilians 
are by no means nice. It is made and loaded at one or two places 
on the coast, but that which is most esteemed comes from the Cape 
de Verde islands ; that brought from Liverpool is generally used 
in the sea-ports. Common woollens, baizes, and some stout fine 
cloths, particularly blue and black, are generally worn ; also kersey- 

9 ' • 



( 333 ) 



meres. Cotton goods of almost every description, especially if low 
priced, meet with ready sale. Hats of all sorts, (particularly dress- 
hats,) and boots and shoes of English manufacture, have of late 
been sold in great quantities ; the leather is much preferable to that 
made in Brazil. Common and finer earthenware, and glass ; some 
sorts of fine and coarse hard-ware ; some plated goods, as candles 
now begin to be used instead of lamps. Bottled porter, Cheshire 
cheese, butter, cheap furniture, tin-plate, brass, lead in various 
shapes, shot of all sizes, gunpowder, drugs, some philosophical in- 
struments, books, low-priced paper, watches, telescopes, salt provi- 
sions, as hams, tongues, and barrelled pork, low-priced sadlery, and, 
most of all, India and other goods fit for the African coast. Marble 
mortars, mirrors, and man}' fancy articles of less note. Silk and cot- 
ton hosiery, fashionable dresses for ladies, particularly fine stockings 
and shoes. 

It is to be observed that the mother-country still continues to send 
oil, wine, brandy, linens, cottons, some silks, and a variety of articles 
of inferior consequence. India goods, consisting chiefly of cottons, 
are sent from the Malabar coast, and China goods are in great plenty. 
From North America are imported flour, salt provisions, turpentine, 
tar, staves, household furniture, &c. 

Naval stores, clothing for sailors, arms, &c. may be said to be 
generally in demand. 

The staple articles of trade from Brazil and the river Plate which are 
most in demand in this country, when its markets are not overstocked, 
are cotton, coffee, hides, tallow of good quality, horns, hair, fur- 
skins, and feathers. Sugar cannot be enumerated among them, 
because our existing colonial regulations prevent it from being gene-- 
rally used in this country : but Brazil is well calculated for growing 
it, having every convenience of situation, and all the materials requi- 
site for machinery. To the above may be added some wood ; that 
beautiful species, called jacaranda, here denominated rose-wood, is 
subject to so high a duty in this country, that it cannot be generally 



( 334 ) 

• 

introduced for cabinet use, that from the East Indies excepted. I 
do not say any thing of indigo, as it is in general inferior. Rice of 
excellent quality is cultivated to great extent. Tobacco, it is to be 
hoped, will be better cured, to suit the English market ; for no where 
can a soil and climate be found more favourable to the production 
of that plant than in Brazil. 

Since the emigration of the court from Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro may 
be truly called the mart of South America, and is likely to become a 
general dep6t of goods from the four quarters of the globe : yet its 
commerce to Africa, to India, and the islands in the Indian sea be- 
longing to the crown of Portugal, as well as its intercourse with 
China, has scarcely been entered into. So many disappointments, 
caused by the political events in the mother-country, and so unex- 
pected an influx of goods from England, occasioned such a stagna- 
tion in commercial dealings, that the opulent merchants were deter- 
mined not to speculate, and other great capitalists, from the heavy 
losses they have sustained, were unable. Thus the monopoly that 
was hitherto exercised by the former class of merchants ceased ; the 
English took their place, and sold goods to the public in the best 
manner they could. Numbers of public auctions were established, 
and goods of all descriptions were sent thither to be disposed of in 
the best way possible, wholesale or retail, in barter, or for money. 
Thus little was done by private merchants in comparison with what 
was sold at auctions, which indeed appeared the only possible mode 
of vending a great variety of goods. Residents in Rio de Janeiro, 
and persons from the country in great numbers, attended the sales : 
the general desire was to buy cheap, without any regard to quality. 
From this source branched numerous smaller streams ; for many 
persons who bought at these sales immediately parcelled out the 
goods in smaller assortments, and gave employment to walking shop^ 
keepers, who were daily occupied in going from door to door, fol- 
lowed by negroes, bearing on their heads tables-full of various arti- 



( 335 ) 



cles. Thus muslins, handkerchief's, prints, kerseymeres, hardware, 
&c. might be purchased cheaper than they were obtained in England. 

When trade shall have resumed its regular channel, Rio de Ja- 
neiro will, no doubt, be a grand and general market for the produce 
of all the ancient Portuguese possessions : it will be a kind of half- 
way house between Europe and India, and every description of 
Asiatic produce will be found in its warehouses. Brazil, freed from 
colonial restrictions, will soon become doubly populous ; its gold, 
instead of being transported to foreign countries as heretofore, will 
circulate among the inhabitants ; and, under a wise legislature, 
it is reasonable to hope that in twenty years this great country will 
rise in prosperity more than any other in the same space of time. 



i 



APPEN- 



( 337 ) 



APPENDIX. 



(A.) Page 44. 

r j~' , HE revolution of the provinces of Rio de la Plata ought not to be considered 
as a momentary commotion caused by a party, or as a public ferment of but 
transient duration. It is an unanimous proceeding of all the people, which had 
been long in preparation, and the execution of which was called for by circum- 
stances — by the dismemberment of the Spanish monarchy, and by the consequent 
necessity, that America should provide for her own exiflence, by constituting her- 
self at least in such a form as should shelter her from the ruin that threatened the 
great whole. To view it in this light, we need only consider the simultaneous 
commotions which took place in other distinct parts of Spanish America, which, 
without any previous combination of plans, produced the same general results as 
in this division of the colonies, and which, notwithstanding the difficulties opposed 
to them, have lasted two years, not only without abatement, but with an accession 
of strength, from the very obstacles employed to quell them. 

Considered as a political event which threatens to change the aspect of an ex- 
tensive continent, the revolution of Buenos Ayres well merits the trouble and 
attention of tracing its causes, its progress, and its effects ; nor ought we to act 
so lightly towards a people, as to censure their conduct, without ascertaining the 
motives and objects by which it was actuated. As the spirit of party is one of the 
effects of every revolution, and, as the innovations in America must have had as 
many enemies as there were individuals united by interest to the ancient form of 
government, or subsisting on the infamous monopoly by which she has been op- 
pressed for three centuries, it will not appear strange, that the selfish and the nar- 
row-minded should have misrepresented the proceedings of the inhabitants in the out- 

x x 



( 338 ) 



set of their new career, and should have attacked with calumnies those men whom 
they could not reduce to submission by force. Whether or not the revolution of 
the provinces of the river Plate be just, whether or not it be well meditated, and 
will in the end be successful, are problems which I am neither able nor willing to 
solve. Regarding it merely in a historical point of view, I shall proceed to speak 
of the more recent events, and attempt to give the reader an idea of the state in 
which those countries are at present, and of the manner in which they have 
brought about the changes that are now observable among them. 

For this purpose, it is necessary to direct our consideration to the period anterior 
to the establishment of the present Junta of government, and recur to the events 
which took place among the people, subsequent to the invasion of the English. 
The military exertions occasioned by that enterprise, awoke the spirit of the in- 
habitants of the vice-royalty, and excited in them a degree of vigour and energy 
of which they had never before been conscious. The royal authority exercised by 
the viceroy, under whose government the country had been loft at the period of 
Major-General Beresford's expedition, could not but sink into contempt before the 
eyes of a people who had of themselves re-conquered the country, and had after- 
wards successfully proved their valour against the English arms. A viceroy 
incapable, if not pusillanimous, who had done nothing more than passively witness 
the loss of two important places belonging to the Spanish crown in these territories, 
and who, by his feeble measures, was bringing on other misfortunes, at the time 
when Sir Samuel Achmuty had already occupied Monte- Video, was ignominiously 
deposed by an extraordinary Junta of the people, who assembled in the Cabildo to 
treat of measures fit to be adopted in circumstances so critical. I shall abstain 
from giving an opinion on this signal proceeding of the people of Buenos Ayres, 
which was doubtless no good augury for the interests of the metropolis, and I 
know not whether, in respect to the illegality of the measure, the colonists ought 
to have waited for the resolution of the cabinet of Madrid, on a point which, 
although very urgent, was, in truth, delicate ; but certain it is, that had they not, 
on this occasion, taken to themselves the privileges of the Sovereign, there was 
much risk that his decisions, when they should arrive, might be dispensed with. 
This deposal, by a natural consequence, gave the chair of the Viceroy Sobremonte 
to the naval captain, Don Santiago Liniers, a French emigrant, who had headed 
the military expedition which restored the place to the Spaniards on the 1 2th of 
August 1 806, and who occupied the same rank when it was invaded by General 
"Whitelocke in 1807. It may with truth be said, that accident alone effected the 
elevation of this man ; devoid of morals, and a victim of dissipation and gaming, 



( 339 ) 

he was sunk into a humiliating obscurity, whence he rose from the condition of a 
subaltern to the high rank of chief of these provinces, of which he had juft been 
the reftorer and defender, not by th* effect of his military talents, but through the 
favour of fortune alone. Vain of success equally unexpected and glorious, he 
devoted himself entirely to the most ambitious projects, and finished by uniting 
himself with the revolution of Spain, which, leaving the monarchy without a 
head, and dismembering all the parts of that great edifice, presented to him the 
most favourable field for the execution of the various plans he was continually 
forming. At one time it appeared to be his intention to keep all these parts of the 
kingdom inactive, until the fate of the metropolis should be decided, and he might 
join the victorious dynasty, as was done by his predecessors in the war of the Suc- 
cession ; at another time, he openly favoured the cause of the French, and, as if he 
distrusted the result of the contest, seemed desirous of precipitating these countries 
into the power of the Usurper. He even ventured to issue cautionary proclama* 
tions of an insidious nature, in which he invoked the name of His Imperial and 
Royal Majesty, a name hitherto never recognized in these regions, and sent out 
emissaries with letters for Napoleon, giving an account of the state of the colony, 
as he had done even in the time of Charles IV., when he addressed to Paris the 
accounts of the late defeat of the English in the river Plata, suing, by this plausi- 
ble pretext, the favour of the Regulator of the Destinies of Europe, for such he 
styled him. Lastly, he was disposed to uphold the pretensions of the Infanta 
Carlota to the internal government of that territory, by way of a provisional ad- 
ministration, during the uncertain state of the Spanish monarchy. Of all these 
projects, among which I should be at a loss to distinguish the favourite one, the 
basis and indispensable condition was, the permanency of his own command in 
the provinces, which is indeed the end and motive of all the public functionaries 
of America ; and, as it was to be feared, that the disorder in the metropolis might 
give rise to commotions in the colonies, which are ever to be dreaded by the con- 
stituted authorities, the Viceroy Liniers thought proper to conceal the real state of 
affairs, at least for some time, until he might be able, with greater security, to fix 
his views on a certain point. Conformably to this safe line of policy, he contra- 
dicted all the rumours which had been spread, respecting the disastrous fortunes 
of the house of Bourbon in Europe, and constantly gave the lie to all the varying 
accounts concerning them which were received through private channels, so that 
whoever dared to doubt the sincerity of the French towards Spain, was accused 
of treason and blasphemy. The magistrates (Oidores) would have entered into the 
plan, had it been merely for the sake of continuing in their offices; and the Cabildo, 

x x 2 



( 340 ) 



at that time composed of European Spaniards, favoured these artifices without 
seeing their drift ; for, from the remarkable ignorance which notoriously charac- 
terized every individual among them, we have not the smallest scruple in impeach- 
ing their judgment ; but, as a voluntary concession to their sense of honour, we 
would rather allow, that the sole intention which actuated them, was a rage for 
suppressing bad news. From these different elements of authority, cunningly 
combined by Liniers, was formed an extraordinary Junta, (convoked and pre- 
sided over by himself,) to determine on all public concerns which presented them- 
selves ; this establishment, however, was accidental, and produced no other effect 
than that of giving efficiency to the will of their chief. 

The arrival of a French sloop of war at Maldonado in the month of July, of the 
same year (1807 J, with an emissary sent by Napoleon, produced a change of 
scene, and developed the mystery. However, as the vessel had arrived at sixty 
leagues distance from the capital, the affair was still misrepresented to the people, 
who were told that, in proof of the good faith with which the French had entered 
Spain, Napoleon sent this ship, laden with muskets and other arms, in order that 
they might defend themselves against the English. The Old Spaniards resident 
in Buenos Ayres were the greatest dupes of this miserable imposture j and for 
two successive nights exhibited the ridiculous spectacle of parading the streets with 
bands of music and lighted torches, and rending the air with acclamations of Viva 
Napoleon : so earnest were they in this classic display of their stupid foolishness, 
that, it may be presumed, they excited the compassion even of those who con- 
trived the deception. The emissary having arrived at the capital, the Junta 
above-mentioned was convened, and his dispatches were read ; they consisted of 
some orders from the new ministers O'Farrel and Azanza, giving an account of 
the occurrences at Aranjuez and Bayonne, and the consequent abdications of the 
crown of Spain in favour of Joseph. In these papers, reflections were made on 
the necessity of acceding to such measures, even if it were for no other reason 
than that of avoiding a disastrous war, which could be productive of no advantage, 
as its last result would be the ruin of the nation, which, in that case, would have 
to yield unconditionally to the law of the conqueror, whereas an opportunity now 
offered, of peaceably placing at its head a wise king, supported by the immense 
influence and power of his omnipotent brother. To this was added, a long and 
piteous narrative of the evils brought on Spain by the family of the Bourbons, 
especially by its later branches, whose misconduct, although described in ex- 
aggerated terms, and with a malicious design, was not altogether misrepresented ; 
the whole concluded with an admonition to the Americans, stating, that the 



( 341 ) 



well-disposed Spaniards of the metropolis expected that they would conduct them- 
selves in this critical conjuncture, at least, with the prudence which their fore- 
fathers had manifested in the war of the Succession. Moreover, there came orders 
from the council of Castille, requiring that oaths of allegiance should be taken 
for the new King Joseph, with others for the Emperor Napoleon, and an additional 
mass of printed papers were distributed on the occasion. As these papers im- 
posed a responsibility on the chiefs of the Viceroyalty for whatever contravention 
or resistance might take place, and as the affair was of such high importance, the 
government thought they could free themselves from such responsibility by 
transferring it to the people, who might, of their own accord, take a resolution 
for which they themselves wanted courage, and which, being adopted as it 
were by the force of the general will, would prevent any blame being attri- 
buted to the persons in power. The Cabildo were of opinion, that the state of 
the monarchy should be made public, and that, by burning the papers brought by 
the emissary, (which was done to the printed ones, but not to the ministerial orders, 
&c.) an idea of the nature of his commission might go forth, and they might 
then wait to see what part the people would take, still inclining them to hope 
for a favourable turn to the existing disasters, which, in their judgment, were but 
transitory. Liniers executed all this in the most dexterous manner, without 
closing the way against the introduction of his own plan, and without losing sight 
for a moment of his attachment to the French. The proclamation he issued, 
announcing the state of Spain, and the disappearance of the reigning family, will 
be an eternal monument of his sinister intentions, as well as a source of shame to 
the people, for having suffered him to insult them by invoking the name of 
Napoleon in order to influence their conduct. 

It is naturally to be supposed, that he would still keep on the best terms with 
the French officer, whom he treated, in private, with every civility ; and in order 
that he might shelter him from the insults of the multitude, who began to be 
disgusted at transactions which they could not comprehend, as well as that the 
real nature of his intentions might not transpire, he persuaded this officer to go to 
Monte- Video, where he might expect an early opportunity of returning to France, 
the brig that brought him having been run aground to avoid an Englifh frigate 
which was in chace of her. In the course of a process afterwards inftituted re- 
specting the flight attempted by this individual, an official letter has been published, 
from Liniers to the Governor of Monte- Video, in which he enjoins that the 
greatest respect and attention be paid to the person of the emissary, as charged 



( 342 ) 



with matters of the greatest importance to the interests of the nation, and orders 
that every facility may be afforded him for a speedy return to Europe. 

The Governor of Monte- Video, at this period, was Don Xavier Elio, the same 
man who was there, until lately, under the title of Viceroy, conferred on him by the 
Junta of Cadiz. He had very powerful motives for disapproving the conduct of 
the chief, who was now beginning to get into notice. Not a word had been said 
on the oath of allegiance to Ferdinand VII., and the steps which the Government 
took were so indirect, that very little penetration was necessary to discover reasons 
for doubting the sincerity of their intentions. Don Xavier Elio rebelled from the 
submission due to the authority of the Viceroy, and forming a Junta at Monte- 
Video, in imitation of feveral provincial Juntas which were already known to have 
been constituted in Spain, declared that he would obey no ordinances emanating 
from the capital of the province, which he considered to be oppressed under the 
command of a traitorous chief. Thus a pernicious lesson was inconsiderately given, 
by which the people did not fail to profit ; and whatever attempts may be made to 
exculpate the refractory proceedings of a subaltern governor, who would in no 
degree have endangered the cause of his nation by acting prudently, and might 
at all events have adopted measures of moderate precaution, it cannot be denied 
that this scandalous example of insubordination must have cost dear to its insti- 
gators. An expedition of troops was sent by the Viceroy against Monte- Video, 
and thus, for the first time since the days of Pizarro, a civil war broke out in 
the Spanish Americas. 

Meanwhile, Liniers was extending the scope of his ambitious views, and in 
proportion as the accusations against him multiplied, he saw the necessity of 
proceeding more openly in the execution of his plans. His firft object was to 
gain a formidable party in the country who might second his measures, and he 
began, by raising to the rank of officers, the most abandoned members of society, 
and others whose want of honour assured him that they would act whatever 
part he assigned them. The invasions of the English had required an augmen- 
tation of the troops, beyond the means of the colonial treasury to maintain j 
but far from reducing the supplementary force, as might have been expected 
when the urgency of the occasion which called it forth had subsided, he daily 
augmented it, by creating new regiments, one of which he distinguished by the 
name of the Grenadiers of Liniers, and reserved it as his body-guard. The 
administration of justice, which by an absurd provision in the constitution of the 
colonies is vested in the Viceroys, was subjected entirely to his favourite project j 



( 343 ) 



despotic as have been all the chiefs sent by the court of Spain to these territories, 
Liniers exceeded them all by his iniquitous proceedings in gaining partisans. 
These disorders, and the multiplied grievances of the public, at length produced 
a great number of malcontents in Buenos Ayres itself, and the authority of the 
Viceroy was combated not only in Monte- Video, but also at home. 

In this interval, arrived from Spain, Don Joseph Manuel de Goyeneche, who 
had been appointed brigadier by the Provisional Junta of Seville, anterior to the 
formation of the Central Junta, and was sent as their Commissioner to promote 
unity and conformity of sentiment between the colonies and the metropolis. 
This man, whom America will ever blush to number among her sons, is a native 
of Arequipa, and a member of a rich family, in whose commercial concerns 
he had gone, some years before, to the Peninsula, where having dissipated 
the money intrusted to him by his father, he assumed the uniform of a captain 
of militia, and became one of the numerous class of loungers in Madrid. At 
the entrance of the French into that city, he obtained from Murat, a commis- 
sion to go to America to support the French cause ; but on his journey into 
Andalusia, he changed his mind, and obtained from the government of that 
province, the charge of Royal Commissioner for South America. On his arrival, 
he thought of nothing but making his fortune ; and, adhering to the interests of 
those who had raised him to the rank of brigadier, recommended, that at all 
events the colonies should preserve their union with the provinces of Spain, 
which had now begun to raise their voice against France. In Monte- Video, he 
professed his assent to the views of its Majesty the Provincial Junta just then 
established, and stated, that his commission directed him to form others in all the 
cities of that continent. On his arrival at Buenos Ayres, and at his first confe- 
rence with Liniers and the magistrates, he entirely changed his language, and de- 
clared, that the Monte- Videans deserved to be called refractory, for having consti- 
tuted themselves in a manner not at all legitimate or proper in America. By this 
concession, however, he was enabled to procure a solemn adjuration of the capital 
to Ferdinand VII., which ceremony had been hitherto postponed, as well as a 
recognition of the Junta of Seville, as the legal representative and depository of 
of the powers of the sovereign. 

The commissioner assumed as many characters as the scene required. Seeing 
that the opponents of the Administration were headed by men respectable for their 
wealth and reputation, he was unwilling to leave means untried to conciliate them ; 
and he therefore insinuated, that the precedent of Monte- Video was proper to be 
followed. The Cabildo, which was the centre of opposition to Liniers, gave the 



( 344 ) 



signal for an insurrection on the ist of January 1809, by forming a popular com- 
motion in favour of the establishment of a Junta ; but this movement had only the 
effect of causing the banishment of its leaders, who were overpowered by the 
troops in the interest of the Viceroy, and by the preponderance of the magistrates, 
who were afraid of losing their posts. 

It is worthy of note, that this conspiracy was entirely the work of European 
Spaniards, all the Creoles siding with the party in power ; and that the spirit of 
the latter was even so much averse from any proceeding repugnant to their scrupulous 
fidelity to the mother-country, that they rejected all the suggestions used by the 
metropolitans to incite them to this act of rebellion, which failed because they re- 
fused to co-operate. But although these seditious tumults were ineffectual, they 
brought to light a truth, which has proved very bitter to the Old Spaniards, namely, 
that the real strength of the country existed in the natives. At the same time, 
there arose between them a spirit of hatred and enmity so violent, as to be irre- 
concileable. The Viceroy, who owed his safety to the bayonets of the native 
troops, took care to flatter their patriotism, by congratulating them on their ac- 
knowledged superiority over their enemies ; thus following the maxim of dividing 
in order to rule, he added fuel to a fire which had been already kindled to an in- 
extinguishable degree. 

While the Europeans of the colony, by their imprudent measures, were daily 
giving fresh motives for disgust to the natives, and temptations to devise means for 
eternally avoiding them, the metropolis was not more cautious in managing the 
intricate interefts of the colonies, and in preventing that frequent collision which 
was detrimental to her own. The Central Junta was recognized and sworn to in 
Buenos Ayres with general enthusiasm ; and the first act in which that body ma- 
nifested its sovereignty, was the mission of a new Viceroy in lieu of Liniers, who 
was to be sent under arrest to Spain. The dispute between the Creoles and the 
Europeans was decided entirely in favour of the latter ; the prisons in which the 
insurgents had been seven months confined, were opened ; and, in order that no 
doubt should remain as to the spirit of the decisions of the mother-country, Elio 
was raised to an employ, which gave him immediate authority over the troops. 
Nevertheless, the natives manifested a fresh proof of their ready deference to the 
will of their Trans-Atlantic lords, and admitted, without repugnance, the Viceroy 
Cisneros, who arrived among them in the beginning of the month of August 
1809 ; but they resisted the promotion of Elio to the office of Inspector-general ; 
and the commandants of the different corps employed their influence to procure a 
relaxation of the orders respecting the transportation of Liniers, which was con- 

9 



( 345 ) 



ceded, and he was allowed to go and reside at Cordova. There this man of en- 
terprize might have leisure to lament his surprise, for it is impossible to ascribe to 
other reasons his readiness to give up the command to his successor. It will, in 
the sequel, appear, that he left this quiet asylum, for which he was indebted to 
the love of the Creoles, for the purpose of fighting against them. 

The posture of affairs, when Don Baltasar Hedalgo de Cisneros took the com- 
mand, was by no means flattering ; on the contrary, it presented the greatest dif- 
ficulties that ever occurred since the conquest. The people began to abandon 
their habitual adoration of a government which was ever varying its form : their 
former sacrifices, and their bold defence, had been passed over without reward j 
they were laden with fresh grievances in various ways , and they were in a condi- 
tion to avenge themselves. The coming of the chief calmed, for a short time, the 
heat of the parties, which had been excited by the former government : this, 
however, was but an apparent tranquillity, by which the ineptitude of Cisneros 
could not profit ; it was like the extraordinary calm preceding a tempest, which a 
skilful pilot can reason from, but from which the ignorant can anticipate nothing. 
The public discontent was augmented by the exhausted state of the treasury, 
which called for some economical reforms in the military establishment ; a measure 
which could not fail of producing uneasiness. Embarrassed in so many various 
ways, the Viceroy asked the advice of men capable of informing him ; one of 
them * who, by his talents, his activity, and his patriotism, will occupy a distin* 
guished place in the history of America, made the most eloquent and energetic 
representations in favour of a free trade with England, as the surest means of re- 
storing happiness to the country, and of improving its finances. 

The earnest complaints of the European Spaniards, exaggerated to such a der 
gree as to represent the colony on the eve of a general revolt, had caused an un- 
reasonable alarm to the central government, and had excited so much prejudice 
against the natives, that the most rigorous and extravagant instructions were given 
to the chief who came to restore order. It is not possible to conceive more harsh- 
ness, more arbitrary conduct, or more injustice, than what was displayed under 
that system of the nation which was denominated popular. The Viceroy, in con- 
formity to his instructions, began to apprehend all the individuals who were ac- 



* Dr. Mariano Mareno, whose decease, in the prime of life, while on a voyage to England as 
envoy from the Junta of Buenos Ayres, deprived his country of one of its brightest ornaments, 
His abilities, as an orator and a statesman, justly gained him the appellation of the Burke of South 
America. 



( 346 ) 



counted suspicious, and they were sent, without any form of trial, or the slightest 
public allegations, to the peninsula, where their common fate was, either impri- 
sonment, or service in the ranks of the armies. Foreigners were persecuted in an equal 
degree, although many of them claimed protection on the ground of their former 
public services, or on that of having married and settled in the territory a consi- 
derable time previous. 

The natural result of all this was, that the authority of the Viceroy was over- 
thrown at the first shock. The 1 9th of May, 1 8 1 o, was the day which put to the 
proof that old system which had rendered itself so odious : very dismal accounts had 
been received of the state of the mother-country, and principally of the Anda- 
lusias, the provinces that had made most stir in America : Cadiz was said to have 
surrendered, and the Central Junta dispersed, not only with ignominy", but under 
suspicions of treason. In this conjuncture, the Viceroy knew not what road to 
take ; and his perplexity was manifested to the people by a proclamation, in which 
he expressed his concern respecting the precarious state of the peninsula, and, far 
from quieting their apprehensions, gave the most evident proofs of his own doubts 
and dejection. The Cabildo saw the necessity of immediately assembling to de- 
liberate on the measures to be taken for preventing the multitude from forming a 
party of themselves to seize the government, for the continuation of which, as 
the fountain of authority was stopped, the men who held it could establish no 
claim. It is evident that, according to every principle of right, the magistrates 
could no longer exercise their functions, and that, the Central Junta being dis- 
solved, Cisneros had no more title to the supreme administration of these provinces 
than the meanest citizen of Buenos Ayres. So far was this ferment from origin- 
ating in any desire of independence which might be supposed to exist among the 
natives, that not a thing was done without the assent and concurrence of the chief, 
with whom all the individuals of the Cabildo, the majority of whom were Euro- 
pean Spaniards, consulted, and, in conformity with him, convoked a congress on 
the 2 2d of the same month, at which the principal inhabitants assisted, in com- 
pliance with a citation made to that effect. 

To the proceedings of this day, the Provisional Junta of Government now reign- 
ing in those provinces owes its origin : it was installed legitimately, and under the 
best auspices, for restoring tranquillity to the people, and for withdrawing them 
from that dangerous state into which they might at every step be thrown by the 
vicissitudes of the metropolis. Not a single instance of violence can be found to 
have taken place during that momentous crisis ; and the magistrates, under the old 
system, have had no reason to complain of any vexation, except that of being 



( 347 ) 



supplanted in their authority. Shortly afterwards, however, a great conspiracy 
was disclosed, that threatened to destroy a proceeding which the agents of despo- 
tism and corruption could not bring themselves to sanction. The passions of the 
functionaries from the metropolis began to take effect ; these men could not easily 
condescend to regard as free men, those who had heretofore been slaves. Monte 
Video was the first town which refused to conform to the established alterations ; 
and, notwithstanding that the first negociations which were opened for securing 
the conformity of that people with the system of the capital, took effect for some 
time, yet on the arrival of a post at a subsequent period, announcing the installa- 
tion of a Council of Regency, was sufficient to induce them to condemn the pro- 
ject, and even to insist that the restoration of the Viceroy was the only means of 
avoiding a rupture. 

The Government of Buenos Ayres, who knew nothing of the Council of Re- 
gency but by report, not having received official dispatches to accredit its exist- 
ence, and to justify its assumption of the rights of sovereignty, refused to ac- 
knowledge it under the pretext of these informalities ; or, at least, deferred doing 
so, until they could satisfactorily examine the title by which that Council had 
placed itself at the head of the nation, after supplanting the Central Junta. And, 
indeed, if we are to regard the matter with the circumspection it merits, this re- 
serve on the part of the New Government cannot be blamed ; nor is it strange, 
that, after having admitted two reigns in the course of two years, they should 
rather hesitate at receiving a third, for otherwise there might have been danger, 
that, after blindly submitting, first to one and then to another, they would be 
driven at length to acknowledge the claims of Joseph Buonaparte. 

On the side of Peru, the innovators beheld no clearer a prospect; Li- 
niers had headed the opposition which was to destroy their projects ; but of all 
the forces that could be collected in the interior provinces, only two small armies 
were formed, one under the command of that chief, and another in Potosi, under 
the orders of Marshal Nieto. Both were completely beaten by a military force 
which the Junta of Buenos Ayres dispatched against them, and the leaders in this 
disgraceful contest forfeited their lives for their rash enterprize. Liniers, Concha, 
Allende, Rodriguez, and Moreno, were executed in the vicinity of Cordova, pur- 
suant to a formal sentence awarded against them as conspirators ; and Nieto, Sanz, 
and Josef de Cordova, were put to death in the principal square of Potosi, with 
the public solemnity usual in such cases. 

To the north, the province of Paraguay had adopted the example of Monte- 
Video, and had also united with the opposition, through the advice of Velasco the 

Y Y 2 



( 348 ) 



governor : a force of five hundred men, under General Belgrano, was sent by 
the Junta in the month of October, 1 8 1 o ; but this interference was of little effi- 
cacy, and the inhabitants persisted, without adhering to the new system, until 
the intrigues and imprudent measures of their own chiefs obliged them to change 
their sentiments. The Paraguayans seized Velasco, and sent him as a present to 
the people of Buenos Ayres, in order to regain their friendship. 

I am too much alive to the disasters of humanity, to enter into the details of 
the civil war and its attendant calamities, which continue to afflict these unhappy 
provinces ; and it is horrible to reflect that, while in Europe, the blood of men 
continues to be shed in torrents, America presents the sad spectacle of intestine 
divisions, in which her citizens are destroying each other through a difference of 
opinion concerning their own rights. The peninsula of Spain is strewn with the 
bodies of her sons, who have sworn to die in avenging the wrongs of their King, 
and in defending their liberty : these colonies, from one extremity to the other, 
are burning with the most violent ardour, and are disputing among themselves on 
the great question, Who is the representative of Ferdinand ; and what are the 
prerogatives which belong to them, as part of the state ? There, the French are 
the agents of injustice and desolation ; here despotism, selfishness, and ignorance, 
are tending to the same ends. Spaniards, if you wish that Providence should 
favour the issue of your contest with the Oppressor of Europe ; if you wish that 
the world should deem you capable of vindicating your rights, and securing them, 
go not to the inoffensive plains of the Rio de la Plata to maintain that oppression 
which in your own country you detest ; pledge not yourselves, that the arbitrary 
power and the tyranny of your kings, which you yourselves acknowledge, shall 
prevail eternally in America ; employ not your strength in perpetuating those bar- 
barous laws which were dictated in the ages of darkness and violence. As yours 
were the arms which gave to the crown of Spain these immense possessions, let 
not their inhabitants have to reproach you a second time with having enslaved 
them. And you, Americans, contemplate the history of nations, and thence 
learn how ye ought to conduct yourselves in the perilous crisis in which ye stand. 
Look on those men, whom difference of opinion has caused you to regard as 
enemies ; they are your own brethren, the loss of whom would be sensibly felt in agri- 
culture, in arts, in your domestic economy : avoid shedding blood, which has 
already begun to stain the pages of your history. I do not exhort you to rebellion,, 
but to be firm and wise in the assertion and establishment of your rights. 



( 349 ) 



(B.) Page no. 

Before 1 took leave of Brazil, I was desirous of submitting to His Royal 
Highness some observations relative to his farm of Santa Cruz, in furtherance 
of the project I had the honour to propose to His Excellency the Conde 
de Linhares*, eighteen months before, for the better management of that 
fine tract of land. These observations, of which I here present to the reader 
an abstract, relate to two objects ; first, to the means of rendering the farm a 
model of agricultural improvement for the planters of Brazil, and next, to the 
improvements by which its lands from their superior quality and their con- 
venient situation might serve, in part, to supply Rio de Janeiro with its pro- 
ductions, and might sustain a great number of excellent cattle to be fattened 
for the consumption of that city. I anticipated the fate of these observations 
before I wrote them ; for practice is widely different from theory, particularly 
to those who were never for a moment engaged in considering such subjects, 
and are certainly incapable of comprehending them. To teach men modern 
agriculture, who have only lived to study dress and parade, would be an 
useless task j for when principals are totally ignorant of what they undertake 
or superintend, they will have neither the power nor the inclination to main- 
tain it in credit, much less, bring it to perfection. 

Thus it is with Santa Cruz, the grounds of which are superlatively better 
than any I ever saw in Brazil, and highly calculated for experimental and 
general agriculture, having plains, hills, rivers, rivulets, and varieties of soil and 
climate. 

Inclosures for the cattle, to a considerable extent, should be the first object of 
attention. Next, a quantity of land, not less than 800 or 1000 acres in situ- 
ations subject to irrigation, should be sown with artificial grasses, particularly 
those most congenial to it ; if this land were well managed, its produce might 
be cut at least four cimes a year. A peculiar mode of planting and of 
management would be necessary ; here the plough should be employed instead of 
the hoe, and other methods resulting from sound practice should be resorted to. 



. * It is to be observed, that by the laws of Portugal, no person can address a letter or memorial 
of any kind to the Sovereign ; all representations must be made through the ministers. 



( 350 ) 



As this would be a principal object, and would well reward the labour it occa- 
sioned, every possible attention should be paid to it. Santa Cruz possesses in- 
exhaustible strata of shell-lime, and various manures in abundance. 

The quantity of land before-mentioned being inclosed and planted, the next 
object should be to select a proper number of young cows for milking, which 
might be augmented in proportion as more land was brought under artificial 
grass ; five or six hundred would be sufficient for the commencement. The 
management of them would, I am aware, require more than common attention, 
and in a concern on so great a scale, some mistakes and disappointments must 
necessarily occur. Their breed should be an object of peculiar care, and the 
best of both species should be introduced ; the pasture of the cows should be 
free from young cattle, horses or mules ; they should be treated with care 
and tenderness, and live in the strictest quiet. 

The meadows inclosed for their pasture would be very insufficient in time 
of scarcity (the dry season), therefore the corrals or places for milking the 
cows should be well supplied with grass, and to these places they would soon 
be accustomed to come, to be milked and fed. But such practice will appear 
ridiculous to the present managers, who think it is right that cows should be 
kept fourteen hours in a pen without food before they are milked, which is 
certainly analogous to the idea of starving them to make them fat. 

It is impossible to calculate the quantity of milk, butter, or cheese, which 
might be obtained from five or six hundred cows, as that would depend on 
many local circumstances, and a variety of experiments would be required, to 
arrive at any degree of accuracy ; but suppose the above number to give only 
6oolb. of butter per week ; in England they would give more than double that 
quantity ; and here it is impossible to calculate what the difference would be in a 
quantity of cows fed on artificial grasses, accustomed to be regularly milked, and 
treated in a manner so superior to that now practised. The augmentation pro- 
duced would exceed any statement I durst give ; for in various parts of Brazil, 
I have known cows even under miserable treatment yield from two to three 
gallons, and instances of this kind are not uncommon in the season of abundance. 
In England, a cow in the vicinity of the metropolis may be eftimated to leave a 
profit of iol. per annum ; in various parts of the country from 7I. to iol., accord- 
ing to the locality. Here, although land and cattle are dear, yet we find this 
produce cheaper than in any part of Brazil. At Rio de Janeiro, good salt 
butter is worth from 3s. 6d. to 4s. per lb. ; and I have even known it to sell at 
nearly double that price ; therefore, it is fair to suppose, that good fresh butter 



( 351 ) 



would sell for at least as much. Thus in Brazil, land and cows are of little 
value, and their produce is extravagantly dear. Is their milk not so good as that 
of any country in Europe ? Equally so. Does it not yield as much cream ? As 
much and as good as I ever witnessed any where. Then is the heat of the 
climate an obstacle ? None, certainly, if proper conveniences were made. The 
winter in England is much more unfavourable for dairy operations than the hot 
weather in Santa Cruz. Then it may be said, they give but little milk : — it is 
impossible that they should give more under such treatment. But to make this 
an object of profit, an entirely contrary system must be adopted, founded on 
rational principles and pursued with industry, and not the offspring of ignorance, 
idleness and folly. Females ought alone to be employed in every thing relative 
to the dairy and milking ; at present, that and other operations are performed by 
the most useful men on the estate. If good roads were made, and a proper 
number of carts and draught cattle were provided, comparatively few men would 
be required to till the land, keep it in cultivation, take care of the cows, feed 
oxen, &c. 

The next object would be a proper building for a dairy, replete with all the 
requisite utensils and conveniences *, and under the superintendance of a person 
conversant with the business, whether in the form of a Commendador or a military 
officer it is of little importance. If he know his duty, he ought to be without 
control, and depend upon his credit in whatever relates to it ; if he be ignorant of 
his duty, why place him there ? A courtier has very different views and habits to 
a farmer, and no one would ever think of entrusting the management of a farm 
to such a person. 

I did not introduce the making of cheese at Santa Cruz for reasons best known 
to myself. This branch of rural ceconomy, and that before mentioned, are 
objects of importance, if profit alone be considered ; but they are still more so, 
as tending to give an example to the whole empire. How worthy it would be of 
the greatness of the Sovereign to make his farm the school from which his sub- 
jects might learn new modes of agriculture, the place to which intelligent strangers 
from all countries would be encouraged to resort, and to contribute useful infor- 
mation. Communications might be opened with the Cape, Ceylon, India, and 
other parts of the world, from which the greatest benefits would result to the 
subjects as well as to the state. 



* For this purpose a central situation should be chosen, where cellars could be formed of suf- 
ficient capacity, and every practicable means used to obtain a circulation of air, and as much as 
possible to exclude heat. 



( 352 ) 

The next object is the fattening of cattle for Rio de Janeiro, a place where good 
meat can scarcely be said to be known. Oxen of a certain age should be brought 
from the interior, and tied up in proper feeding-houses, as they would be liable, 
if turned loose, to get into the marshes and be lost. Two or three hundred would 
be sufficient to begin with : they might cost, when brought to Santa Cruz, four 
or five milreis each, and would be fattened in three or four months, when they 
would sell for eleven or twelve milreis each, more or less. They would require 
artificial food most convenient to the soil and climate, and a quantity of land under 
the best cultivation, to maintain them. Nay, I think the feeding might be extend- 
ed, so as to sell two or three hundred monthly. It must be understood, that a 
variety of sheds for feeding-houses are indispensable. A farm (like Santa Cruz) 
without conveniences is a mere waste of land ; for store-houses, and appropriate 
buildings of every description, are equally necessary as a dwelling-house. In the 
poor hovels occupied by the worthy tenants of Santa Cruz, not the least attention 
has been paid to the erection of barns or other out-houses, for produce of every 
description ; indeed, I again repeat that they are miserable dwellings, hateful to 
those who occupy them for want of comfort. If, by way of contrast, two neat 
farm-houses were to be built with every convenience, after the most approved Eng- 
lish plans, having certain portions of land allotted to them, with good roads, and 
water brought if necessary, for the purpose of irrigation, they would be perfectly 
adequate to pay a rent equal to the interest of money laid out upon them ; and it 
is probable the experiment would be attended with the happiest consequences. 
Then would His Royal Highness soon find his rich lands adorned with beautiful 
villas, and the road from thence to Rio de Janeiro would be covered with vehicles 
conducting their produce to that market. But liberality so different from the present 
narrow principles which direct the management of that estate, cannot be expected 
from those who strive all in their power to oppress the tenants instead of encourag- 
ing them. These unhappy men, wearied by such grievances, and seeing no pros- 
pect of amelioration, are daily leaving the estate under the conviction that no 
change can be for the worse ; and there is reason to fear that His Royal Highness 
will soon find his farm a desert. The probable result will be, that he will be per- 
suaded to consent to part with it ; and the same disingenuous practices will take 
place, which wrested from the Viceroy the only two sugar-mills on the estate. 
This hint may possibly be given too late ; for I have reason to suppose, that the fate 
of Santa Cruz was decided before I left the country. If it is not too late, it may 
serve to frustrate the views of those who have ever coveted this princely domain, 

9 



( 353 ) 



Among the first objects of experimental agriculture, I may mention the growth 
of hemp, for which some parts of the rich plains of Santa Cruz are so well cal- 
culated. This plant is indigenous to hot climates, and, in cold countries, is pro- 
duced only during the hot season. Some which I sowed in my garden gave 
the most flattering appearances, and, in six weeks after being sown, was eighteen 
inches high ; but it was capriciously ordered to be cut down on my leaving the 
estate. As an excellent substitute for this plant, I may mention the aloe, which 
grows spontaneously in great luxuriance, and makes very good fences. From its 
fibres I made some twine, which I am persuaded might have been manufactured 
into strong and durable canvas. 

There is a great extent of low land, for the greater part of the year a continued 
bog, in which many weak cattle are daily suffocated ; but, under the management 
of a skilful drainer, it might produce an abundance of fine grass. The large 
plains, so favourable to the growth of rice, are uncultivated ; nor is one piece of 
machinery employed to take the rusk from that grain, to clean coffee, or to prepare 
mandioca. A multitude of persons are employed in these operations, which are 
extremely ill conducted, and are subject to every species of peculation. 

The rising grounds or hills present large tracts fit for the growth of coffee, cot- 
ton, mandioca, and other produce. I have not touched upon sugar, because, at 
present, Santa Cruz has no mills ; the best lands for the growth of that article 
were sold, together with the mills, some years ago. One of these, situated on a 
river called Taguai, is at least equal, if not superior, to any, in the whole extent 
of America. It was built by an able engineer on the most scientific principles, and 
has two sets of rollers and two ranges of boilers. The rollers are worked by one 
simple upright shaft moved by a horizontal water-wheel. It is a most capacious 
building, not less than seventy yards long by about twenty-five wide, with a distil- 
house and proper drying-houses at the farther end. This establishment, and the 
lands annexed to it, if worked to their extent, are capable of producing more than 
a thousand tons annually. 

The indigo of this country, as I have before observed, is not good ; probably a 
better kind might be procured from seed brought from India ; and no place could 
be found so favourable for the experiment as the royal farm. A large field is here 
open for the introduction of cochineal, opium, tobacco, &c. which might be effect- 
ed without expence, and would probably yield some profit. 

The excellent strata of lime which are found on the estate, might be worked to 
great advantage, not only for- the purposes of agriculture, but for building and 

z z 



( 354 ) 



large quantities of it might be sent to Rio de Janeiro. The brick-yard and tan- 
nery, if well conducted, would yield considerable profit. 

At Santa Cruz, where it might be expected that superior management would 
be found, there is hardly a single department which would not be better conduct- 
ed if left to the care of the negroes themselves. No provision is made in the time 
of abundance to meet the season of scarcity. Every thing is done without fore- 
sight j and so great is the neglect, that when His Royal Highness pays a visit to 
the farm, two or three hundred negroes are employed in cutting grass for the 
twenty or thirty mules of His Royal Highness's equipage. This calls aloud for 
some mode of culture to prevent so grievous a misapplication of useful labour. 

I may here touch upon another point of no less importance than the manage- 
ment of the whole concern. It is difficult to conceive, why whatever relates to 
His Royal Highness, should be conducted without profit, and with the most mi- 
serable meanness. The goodness of the Prince is acknowledged by ail his sub- 
jects, and his desire to promote human happiness is equalled only by his greatness 
of mind. Yet among those who manage his private concerns, there is an inaction 
and a tyrannical narrowness without example. This establishment, which ought 
to be governed as private property, supports a train of intendants, majors, admi- 
nistrators, alms-sheriffs, secretaries, clerks, Serjeants, corporals, soldiers, and mes- 
sengers without number, who give it more the appearance of one of the old Ger- 
man principalities, than of a rural farm. With all this ostentation, there is not 
even a shadow of that liberality which should attend it. The good tenant who 
comes leagues to pay his rent, wet and fatigued, is never invited to take any re- 
freshment ; to the weary traveller no door is open ; neither for love nor money 
can he procure a hospitable shed, and he is obliged to seek some cottage or vend 
that will administer to his necessities. In fact, through the conduct of His Ma- 
jesty's servants, the misery of Santa Cruz has become proverbial, and, like a 
haunted house, it is detested and avoided by all who know it. 

Such is the present state of the royal farm, and such the conduct of those who 
are appointed to manage it ; and, although an Englishman of talents, as I am in- 
formed, has been placed there, yet I venture to predict that he will leave it in 
disgust, and will prefer to live in any remote part, rather than submit to the 
vexations to which he will there be exposed. 



( 355 ) 



APPENDIX, (C.) 

In page 260 of this work, I have stated, that it was my intention to enquire 
into, and to make some observations on the present regulations relative to diamonds. 
These beautiful gems have been found in such abundance in Brazil, as to supply 
not only Europe, but Asia ; as those of India were scarce, and frequently with* 
held from sale, diamonds from Brazil were sent thither, and usurped their name. 
The question we are at present about to examine is, how far it would be consistent with 
the interest of the Portuguese Government, to permit the searching for diamonds, in 
the same way as for gold, under peculiar laws. The monopoly is ineffectual, be- 
cause the diamonds are found in so many parts widely distant from each other, that 
it is impossible to prevent the searching for them clandestinely. The attempt to 
preserve grounds known to contain these gems, by forming a distacamento, has 
never produced any good effect ; and it is by no means improbable, that the best 
of these (supposed) preserved lands are already worked, therefore the soldiers are 
guarding the chest after the treasure has been taken away. How many places might 
be mentioned out of the district of Cerro do Frio, where troops of negroes daily 
work ! It has been stated, that Government probably receive little more than a 
moiety of the gems found at their expence ; if so, it is certainly time to abandon 
so bad a trade, or change the system altogether. Is it the interest of Brazil to 
keep her sons in continual torture and fear respecting these precious gifts, which 
the bounteous hand of Providence has placed there ? But this monopoly is in a 
fair way to destroy itself, and must, of course, soon give way from necessity, for 
there are not at this moment purchasers for the treasury diamonds ; they may re- 
main year after year, until the interest outvalues the capital. How happens it, 
that diamonds, in the hands of individuals, meet a ready sale ? First, Because 
they are better stones, and are offered in quantities more convenient for the pur- 
chasers ; Secondly, They are frequently bought at a less price than that paid by 
Government for those procured from their own establishments. If they were sub- 
ject to pay a fifth, Government would have such power as to enable them to com- 
mand the market ; and if they should become cheaper in Europe, the demand for 
them would become more general, therefore their price would not be likely to fall in 
Brazil ; and, even if it did, is it not the blindest policy for the court to put such 
a yoke round the neck of her excellent subjects, who venture their lives in track- 

z z 2 



( 356 ) 



less deserts searching for mines, and exposing themselves to every danger ? Would 
it have been possible for Portugal to colonize Brazil if there had been no gold mines 
to attract adventurers ? To deny men the treasures with which nature has enriched 
the country, is to oppose one great check to its population ; for the example of one 
adventurer becoming rich, would be the means of inducing hundreds to follow 
him. Under the present system, there is so great a struggle between the tempta- 
tion of becoming suddenly rich, and the fear of being ruined by detection, that 
when a man finds a diamond by accident, he knows not whether to appropriate it, 
or to surrender it to the Government ; even in the latter case, he has little prospect 
of reward, and runs the risk of being accused as a smuggler. Instances have been 
known of men who have thrown away the diamonds they have accidentally found *, 
rather than involve themselves in ruin, either by keeping them, or delivering them 
to Government. 

It has before been shewn, that Government are the greatest gainers by the 
diamonds which are sold clandestinely ; and if individuals were allowed to trade 
in them, the state would undoubtedly be benefited by it. For it is certain, that a 
Brazilian farmer or miner would prefer necessaries, such as iron utensils, cloth- 
ing, &c. which add to his comforts and conveniences of life, to articles of ideal 
value, which in reality have come into his hands probably without difficulty or 
expence. Thus the peasantry would draw valuable produce from other countries 
in exchange for what cost them comparatively nothing, and, by enriching them- 
selves, would augment the revenues of the state. 

If the diamonds were made liable to pay a fifth, either in kind or in value, it 
is probable that there would be less smuggling ; and that practice might be still 
more restrained, by something like the following regulation : every person finding 
diamonds should be obliged to register them ; also, to take out a certificate autho- 
rising him to dispose of them in whatever manner he thinks proper. It would 
certainly add to their importance, to make them subject to a small duty t, on be- 
ing lawfully transferred from the buyer to the seller, by which means they would 
come into immediate circulation and represent real property : thus, after yielding 
a profit to each person through whose hands they passed, they would finally be 
exported j and, as long as diamonds continued an article of distinction, ornament, 



* Formerly, if any diamonds were found in a gold-washing, the owner was obliged to desist from 
working it, and the ground was appropriated by government. This law is now no longer in force. 

It is reasonable to suppose, that few persons would hazard the penalty incurred by dealing in 
diamonds clandestinely, when, by paying a duty, they could bring them fairly into circulation. 



( 357 ) 



and elegance, Brazil would lay under tribute every court in the civilized 
world. 

The Dutch were artful enough to poison the ears of the ministers of Portugal 
against the proposal of making diamonds a free trade, and assisted in the per- 
secutions against those unfortunate sufferers who were detected in possessing them; 
but surely that narrow-minded and self-interested policy is now done away with ; 
nor would it be credited in modern history, that the Government of Brazil, for 
a trivial, pecuniary profit, should be the dupes of their own bank and a few 
interested strangers. 

Branches of the Revenue. 

The following is a statement of the various branches of the revenue of Brazil, 
which is perhaps unequalled by that of any other country consisting of the same 
population : — 

1. A fifth upon all the gold obtained in any and every part of. Brazil. 

2. A duty of fifteen per cent, upon all merchandize entered at the Custom- 
house and imported, except what is imported in Portuguese ships, which pays 
something less. 

3. A small tax upon exports. 

4. Tythes, or ten per cent, upon the productions of the land. This branch of 
revenue yields a large income to the state, to which it has belonged since the first 
settlement of the colony, when the reigning Sovereign, by contract with his Ho- 
liness, agreed to pay the salaries of the clergy, in order to induce them to go to 
that remote and uncivilized country. It is also claimed by the state in virtue of 
the order of Christ, of which the monarchs of Portugal are grand-masters. It is 
portioned into distinct districts, each of which is either contracted for, or put up 
at auction separately in the treasury under such arrangements as to be allotted to 
those who have most interest. The several renters collect it by ascertaining the 
number of negroes upon every estate, or possessed by every house-keeper, and 
agree to receive a certain rate per head instead of taking it in kind. The amount 
for which the various tythes are sold it is not easy to calculate, but it must be very 
considerable. I am almost certain that the tythes of Rio Grande alone were sold 
for ten thousand pounds per annum for three years *. In Bahia, and other places, 



* This revenue arises from hides, which are subject to this duty. 



( 358 ) 



where sugar and cotton are taken in tythe, the amount must be enormous. The 
contractors derive great emoluments from these imposts ; in one of the smallest dis- 
tricts, Canta Gallo, the population of which is less than any other in proportion 
to its extent, the profits were calculated to yield above 6ool. per annum. 

5. Indulgences, which are disposed of under the same regulations as the tythes, 
the contractor of the district appointing agents in every parish to sell them for 
Jiim. 

6. A duty upon every thing that enters the mining district, which is paid on passing 
the register of Matthias Barbosa, or on crossing the Paraibuna. This tax is about 
six shillings the arroba, or somewhat more than twopence per lb. for all commo- 
dities indiscriminately. New negroes pay ten milreis each. Oxen going to Rio 
de Janeiro pay two milreis per head. 

A considerable sum arises from the tolls paid on passing the various rivers. 
Two milreis for each mule, unless with cargo. 

A new tax of five reis per lb. has been imposed on all butcher's meat sold in 
the principal towns. 

Spirituous liquors transported to Rio de Janeiro pay ten dollars per pipe. 

A new tax has been laid upon the rents of houses, which is levied very fa«. 
vourably. 

The gold dust that was permitted to circulate in the mines has been called in, 
and paper-money peculiar to the district has been issued, to the amount of a hun- 
dred thousand pounds sterling. 

A considerable sum has been produced by the stamping of dollars, which were 
received at seven hundred and fifty reis, and re-issued, after being stamped, at 
nine hundred. 

View of the State of Society among the Middling Classes^ employed in Mining and 

Agricidture. 

We are naturally led to imagine, that, in a country where mines of gold and 
diamonds are found, the riches of the inhabitants must be immense, and then- 
condition most enviable ; the Portugueze themselves, who reside in the mining 
districts, encourage this supposition ; and whenever they go to Rio de Janeiro, do 
not fail to make all possible shew and parade. But let us view them in the centre 
of their wealth ; and as a fair criterion of the middling classes of society, let us 
select a man possessing a property of fifty or sixty negroes, with datas of gold 
mines, and the necessary utensils for working them. The negroes alone are worth, 

9 



( 359 ) 



at the low valuation of icomilreis each, a sum equal to i,2ool. or 1,5001. sterling j 
the deltas and utensils, though of value, need not be taken into the account. Sup- 
pose this man to be married, and to have a family : What is the state of their 
domestic concerns, their general way of life ? May I be allowed to describe them 
in the language which truth dictates, without exaggeration or extenuation. Their 
dwelling scarcely merits the name of a house ; it is the most wretched hovel that 
imagination can describe, consisting of a few apartments built up to each other 
without regularity j the walls wicker-work, filled up with mud ; a hole left for a 
frame serves as a window, or a miserable door answers that purpose. The cracks 
in the mud are rarely filled up ; and in very few instances only have I seen a house 
repaired. The floors are of clay, moist in itself, and rendered more disagreeable 
by the filth of its inhabitants, with whom the pigs not unfrequently dispute the 
right of possession. Some ranchos, it is true, are built upon piles ; and under- 
neath are the stables, &c. ; these are certainly a little superior to the former. 
They are built so from necessity, where the ground is uneven or swampy ; but it 
may be easily conceived, that the disagreeable effects produced by want of clean- 
liness, must in these instances be increased by the effluvia from the animals under- 
neath, which I have frequently found intolerable. 

The furniture of the house is such as might be expected from the description 
above given. The beds are very coarse cotton cases, filled with dry grass, or the 
leaves of Indian corn. There are seldom more than two in a house ; for the ser- 
vants generally sleep upon mats, or dried- hides laid on the floor. The furniture 
consists of one or two chairs, a few stools and benches, one table, or perhaps 
two, a few coffee-cups and a coffee-pot of silver ; a silver drinking cup, and, in 
some instances, a silver wash-hand bason, which, when strangers are present, is 
handed round with great ostentation, and forms a striking contrast to the rest of 
the utensils. 

The general diet of the family consists of the same articles which have already 
been particularized in treating of St. Paul's. The only beverage is water ; and 
nothing can be more frugal than the whole economy of the table. So intent is the 
owner in employing his slaves solely in employments directly lucrative, that the 
garden, on which almost the entire subsistence of the family depends, is kept in 
the most miserable disorder. 

In the article of dress, they do not appear more extravagant than in that of 
food. The children are generally naked ; the youths go without shoes, in an old 
jacket, and cotton trowsers ; the men in an old capote or mantle wrapped 
around them, and wooden clogs, except when they go from home ; and, on those 



( 360 ) 



occasions, they appear in all their splendour, forming as great a contrast to their 
domestic attire, as the gaudy butterfly does to the chrysalis from which it 
springs. 

It might be expected, that however penuriously the general concerns of the 
family were conducted, at least some degree of attention and expence would 
be bestowed on the dress of the females ; for the test of civilization among all 
nations is the regard paid to the fair sex, on whom the happiness of domestic life 
depends. Yet the general poverty and meanness of their attire is such, that they 
reluctantly appear before any one, except the individuals of their own family. 

In short, in all those departments of domestic economy, which to the middle 
classes of other civilized nations are objects of expence, the Brazilians exercise the 
most rigid parsimony. At first, I was inclined to attribute this disposition to a 
love of money, which prompted them to avoid all extravagance ; but, on closer 
observation, I was surprised to find that it originated in necessity. They generally 
run in debt for the few articles they have to purchase, and sometimes find it diffi- 
cult to maintain their negroes. If they purchase a mule, it is at one or two years* 
credit, and, of course, at double its ordinary price. 

In fuch a family as that above defcribed, the sons, as might be expected, are 
brought up in idleness ; they are merely taught to read and write ; rarely do they 
attend to the mining department ; they learn no trade, nor are they instructed 
in any useful employment ; for a miner, perhaps an ensign or a lieutenant of 
militia, would think it a disgrace to put his son apprentice to a mechanic. 
Suppose the father of this family to die when the sons have just attained the 
age of puberty. They are now for the first time obliged to think of provid- 
ing for themselves. Educated in poverty and pride, they have learned to 
think all occupations servile, and their own is generally so poor as to be 
hateful to them. If they agree, not to divide the negroes, it generally happens 
that they run into debt, and continue in wretchedness • if they divide them, 
each takes his course, and adventures for himself, and in a short time, they 
are generally obliged to part with their slaves, and exist in indigence. Every 
useful pursuit and every comfort is neglected for the sake of seeking hidden 
treasures which very rarely are found, and which when found are as rarely 
employed to advantage, but rather serve to increase the idleness of the 
owners. 

Few, very few of the numerous class of miners from which the above instance 
is selected are rich, few are even comfortable ; how wretched then must be 



( 361 ) 



the state of those who possess only eight or ten negroes, or whose property 
does not exceed three or four hundred pounds. 

Thus situated in one of the finest climates in the world, with rich lands full 
of the finest timber, abounding in rivulets and water-falls in every direction, 
containing, besides precious minerals, iron ores, and almost every other useful 
product, the inhabitants of Brazil, though secured from absolute want, remain in 
indigence. It is true, the miner procures his gold by great labour, but this need 
not preclude him from improving his domestic condition. Were his hovel con- 
verted into a house, his slaves better fed and lodged, and his family better provided 
for, his whole affairs would receive a new impulse, and every part of his property 
would become doubly productive, 

Negroes employed as Messengers. 

One description of men whom I have omitted to mention before, are negroes 
employed as messengers by the various chiefs in the Capitania of Minas Geraes. 
The men selected for this employment are the most trusty and able-bodied that 
can be found. Their letters are locked up in a leathern bag, which they buckle 
round them, and never take off until they deliver its contents. They carry a 
a gun and ammunition with them to defend themselves, as well as to provide them- 
selves with food. Wherever they halt, they are sure of a kind and friendly recep- 
tion, for nothing can exceed the cordiality with which the negroes welcome each 
other. These men are trusted on very important missions, and are dispatched to 
every part of the Capitania. On urgent occasions, some of them have performed 
journeys with astonishing celerity. I was most credibly informed, that one of 
them had been known to travel seven hundred miles on a mountainous road in 
sixteen days, though that distance usually occupies twenty or twenty-one days. 
The men are generally tall, and of spare habit ; they are accustomed to light food 
and long abstinence. 

Diseases peculiar to the Country. 

Of diseases I Mid not hear of any that were contagious, except Psora, which 
sometimes prevails among the lower orders, who rarely use any remedy against it, 
nor will they hear of sulphur, as they believe it to be fatal. Colds, attended with 
fever, are the most general complaints ; but consumptions are rarely heard of. 
Among the miners, I saw no symptoms of elephantiasis, though that disease is so 

3 a 



( 362 ) 



eommon in many other parts of Brazil, particularly on the sea-coast. The sciatica 
which afflicts travellers after long journeys on mules, is attributed by the people of 
the country to the bodily heat of those animals, which is much greater than that 
of horses, and communicates to the loins of the rider, occasioning almost constant 
excruciating pain, which frequently becomes chronic, and sometimes incurable. 
Being, on my return from the diamond district, much tormented with this com- 
plaint, I was naturally led to make inquiries on the subject, and was informed, 
that a person in the house where I then resided, had returned from a long journey 
in the same predicament, and was about to undergo the mode of cure commonly 
practised in the country. I was desirous of inquiring the nature of it, and begged 
to be introduced to him. On conversing with him, I found that his symptoms 
were similar to mine ; he complained of great pain in the os sacrum, and down 
the left thigh to the knee, which afflicted him most when in bed, where he could 
not bear to lie in any posture for half an hour together, but was obliged to rise 
and wait until the warmth occasioned by the bed was abated, when he lay down 
again. Thus he could get no sleep night or day. On asking if he had tried any 
external application as a stimulus, he replied, that neither that nor any other 
remedy was of the smallest avail, except the one peculiar to the country. The 
operation was as follows : — The patient lay down on a bench with his back up- 
wards, and a youth, twelve or fourteen years of age, knelt upon his loins, and 
continued to trample them (as it were) with his knees for about the space of half 
an hour, apparently reducing the muscles almost to a jelly. In a few hours after- 
wards, the part became highly discoloured, and had the appearance of being very 
much bruised. If one operation had not the desired effect, another, and even a 
third, would be had recourse to. It must be confessed, that this remedy, in 
removing one evil, occasions another ; but the advantage is, that the latter is of 
short duration, whereas the former endures sometimes for life, and gives continual 
affliction. In some cases it has been applied with success, but, in others, it has 
entirely failed. 



On the Use of Mercury in the Mining Department. 

The Government of Brazil would find it highly to their interest to promote the 
use of mercury in the gold district. The process of amalgamation is so simple, 
that there would be no difficulty in introducing it generally among the miners ; 
and it would save much time and labour in the last operation of washing, or what 
is called purifying. It is possible, also, that by the application of muriate of soda, 



( 363 ) 



some silver might be discovered in antimonial ores, also in pyrites which accom- 
panies gold. 

Perhaps it may not be improper, in this place, to describe the method pursued 
in working the silver mines on the coast of Chili, which may be estimated to produce 
about a million of dollars annually. Some of these mines are full fifty yards deep ; 
and we are told of one nearly as many fathoms. It is probable that they are sunk 
upon the vein ; and they are so ill secured, that they frequently fill, and bury 
those within them. The ore, a sulphuret of silver with antimony, lead, and 
blende, is brought up on the shoulders of wretched Indians, who descend and 
ascend by insecure posts with notches cut in them. They are total strangers to 
the operations of boring and blasting, and use only miserable hammers and wedges. 
The gang with the ore is, in some places, reduced by means of a large stone, ill- 
constructed, not unlike a bark-mill ; in others, it is reduced by hand, and, when 
sufficiently fine, it is washed by several operations in a slovenly manner, until the 
metallic part alone remains, which is not unlike lead ore dust in appearance. This 
is formed into small heaps, perhaps about loolb. in weight, to each of which are 
added about 20 or 25 lb. of muriate of soda. This is triturated and worked both 
by hands and feet for three or four days. When the soda is judged to be suffi- 
ciently incorporated with the metal, mercury is used in the proportion of five to 
ten per cent., and is triturated until it loses its globular form ; to prove which, a 
small bit is rubbed upon a horn, or upon the thumb-nail, and if any globules 
appear, however minute, the trituration is continued until they totally disappear *. 
To this mixture the workmen frequently add filth, rags, &c. place crosses upon 
the heaps, and use many ridiculous ceremonies dictated by folly and a belief in 
necromancy. At length the mercury unites itself to the silver, and forms with it 
a paste-like mass, separating itself from the remainder, which is thrown away. 
This mass is put into goat-skins, and, by twisting and squeezing, a great part of 
the mercury passes through. The remainder is sublimed by heat, and is condensed 
with more or less loss, according to the mode applied, and the skill of the operator. 
The little gold which is procured in some of the mines on this coast undergoes a 
similar process j afterwards, the remainder is melted and assayed. 

In this part of Chili, the state of society is wretched j gambling is a general 
vice, and murder is scarcely deemed a crime. The greatest depredations are com- 
mitted with impunity, nor do the crosses placed on the heaps protect them from 



* It would be interesting to enquire, in what manner the salt acts upon the ore containing silver, 
for without it the mercury has no effect. 

3 A 2 



( 364 ) 



plunderers ; so that, when a mine proves good, the hopes of the proprietor are 
often frustrated through the poverty and envy of his neighbours. 

The copper mines of Guasco, Copiapo, and Coquimbo, are wretchedly worked, 
nor would it perhaps be safe to introduce other methods. The copper is smelted 
in a hearth with bellows and wood ; and if, when it is run into cakes, it has the 
appearance of copper, they do not smelt it again, but if it is so covered and inter- 
mixed with slag, as not to be known, it is broken up and undergoes a second 
smelting, when not unfrequently slag is placed so as to be in the centre. These, 
and other deceptions, have brought the trade into great discredit. The copper is 
sold from eight to eleven dollars per 1 04 lb. It is considered a poor trade, though 
the Spaniards always think the Chilian copper, and even the timber which serves 
for fuel, to be full of. gold. 



Ihrii ly of Hcli.v OvaMs 




M.lomy delin 



( 365 ) 



EXPLANATION of the Plate of Crystals of Diamond, Topaz, and Tourmaline. 

Diamond. 

Fig. i. — Primitive crystal, a regular octaedron, from which all the other forms 

may be conceived to be derived. 
Fig. 2. — Octaedron with edges replaced by four faces, two and two making such 

obtuse angles at a a, as sometimes to be scarcely perceptible ; and then it passes 

into Fig. 3., when the faces become so broad as to meet in the point b, forming 

a three-sided pyramid on each face of the primitive crystal. 
Fig. 4. — When the angles at a a, Fig. 2., are decidedly marked, and the faces 

meet, as at b, Fig. 3., a pyramid of six faces is formed on each plane of the 

primitive crystal. 

Fig. 5. — If the edges of the primitive crystal be replaced by planes a a, an octo- 
dodecaedron, or solid of twenty faces, will be formed. 

Fig. 6. — If the planes a a of Fig. 5. be conceived to meet, as at b, a rhomboidal 
dodecaedron will be formed. 

Fig. 7. and 8. — If the planes a a a of Fig. 6. be conceived to be extended as in 
Fig. 7., or contracted as in Fig. 8., they may be considered as six-sided prisms, 
terminated by three-sided pyramids, in which the terminal planes are set alter- 
nately on the edges c, d, of the prism. 

Fig. 9. — Sometimes the faces a a a of Fig. 6. are divided in the direction of the 
shorter diagonal, as shown in this figure. 

Fig. 1 o. — If the edges and the solid angles of the primitive crystal be replaced by 
planes, the crystal (Fig. 1 o.) will be produced ; and if the edges be very slightly 
and the angles very deeply truncated, a cube will be formed. This latter is 
one of the rarest forms of the diamond. 

Fig. 11. — If Fig. 1. be conceived to be divided parallel to two of the opposite 
faces of the octaedron, and through the middle of the crystal, and one of the 
segments be turned a sixth part round, the form, Fig. 1 1., will be produced. 

The dotted lines in the first six Figures, shew the position of the nucleus or pri- 
mitive crystal. 



( 366 ) 



Topaz. 

Fig. i. — -A right rhomboidal prism with angles of 124 0 22' and 55 0 38'. 
Fig. 2. — An eight-sided prism terminated at each end by a four-sided pyramid. 
Fig. 3. — A similar prism terminated at each end by two broad and four smaller 
planes. 

Fig. 4. — A similar prism terminated at each end by two broad and five smaller 
planes. 

Tourmaline. 

Fig. 1. — The primitive crystal, an obtuse rhomboid. 

Fig. 2. — A nine-sided prism, terminated at one end by six planes, and at the other 
by three. 

Fig. 3. — Shews the lower end of Fig. 2. 

Fig. 4. — A nine-sided prism terminated at each end by six planes, the broader and 
narrower of which are set alternately on the edges and sides. 
Fig. 5. — The lower end of Fig. 4. 
The ends A A of Figs. 2. and 4. are the seats of the vitreous or positive, and B B 
of the resinous or negative electricity, when the crystals are gently heated. 



THE END. 



DIRECTIONS TO THE BINDER. 



View of Negroes washing for Diamonds at Mandanga on the River 

Jigitonhonha in Cerro do Frio, to face the Title 

View of the Gold-washing at Jaragna near St. Paul's, P'7$ 

Map of the Author's Route, - p. 137 

View of the Topaz Mine at Capon p. 1 63 

View of the Manner in which the Bed of the River Jigitonhonha is laid 

dry by an Aqueduct in order to search for Diamonds, p. 22 1 

Machinery, - p. 276 

The Three following at the End of the Appendix : 

Crystals of Diamond, Topaz, and Tourmaline. 
Minerals collected by the Author during his Tour. 
Shells. - " - 



MINERALOGY. 



The study of this useful science has been much retarded by the difficulty of 
obtaining a Collection, and the high prices generally asked for peculiar Specimens. 
With a view to obviate this, Mr. Ma we has been induced to form Portable Col- 
lections, classed and arranged, with a Catalogue, at Twelve Guineas ; larger 
Cabinets, containing two hundred and fifty Specimens, at Fifteen Guineas ; others^ 
containing upwards of three hundred Varieties, Twenty Guineas. Collections, 
consisting of five hundred larger and fine Specimens (without Cabinet) Fifty 
Guineas. 

Any Specimens may be exchanged, if required j and the Collection may be 
formed peculiarly rich in any given Class. 

Large, elegant and rare Minerals at reduced prices. Precious Stones, Minerals 
and Shells, purchased. 

A great Variety of elegant Vases formed and enriched after the Antique. 
At No. 149, Strand, Three Doors West from Somerset-house. 



Strahan and Preston, 
Printers-Street, London. 



in ^ 



#1 * \° °x> 



oo 1 



8^ : 



0 S '• * *<%. 



